Summer Lovin'
by they-call-me-nerdy
Summary: Post 2x22: A summer no one plans to forget. Finn and Rachel have spent too long apart and now they are intent on making this the best summer ever.
1. The Rain Falls

"Ugh, great! It's raining!" Tom sighed as he exited the dance studio. "Hey Rachel?! I'm gonna run, see you next week?"

"See you." The petite brunette smiled at her dance partner and tugged her phone out of her bag. She had three messages and she had to grin when she saw that two of them were from Finn.

_Hey baby, miss you, hope you have fun at dance __ Love you x_

_Ok, dying to see you, let me know when you're home, love you x_

She grinned even wider as she read them but frowned when she read the remaining message from her Dad.

_Sorry Princess, can't pick you up, Daddy and I have been called out to NY urgently. Can you stay somewhere this week? If it's Finn's, you stay with Kurt. We love you x_

Great. First week of summer and her fathers were away. It was pouring it down at she had no lift home. Even standing underneath the shelter by the studio, she could feel the specks of rain seeping through her ballet tights.

She could call Finn but she really didn't want to inconvenience him. It was only a few blocks to his house, she could make a few blocks.

Determined, she tugged her light cardigan tighter around her body and headed into the rain.

She was fine for around a block until the rain started to come down heavier and heavier. She felt like she had water everywhere and could feel all her makeup running down her face.

She powered on through, knowing that if she didn't then she'd be stuck in the rain for longer.

But when she got to the street before Finn's, the sky lit up suddenly followed by a roar and Rachel jumped so much in surprise that she fell forwards. Thankfully, she managed to stop her legs hitting the floor and getting holes in her ballet tights but her hands were stinging like hell and sure enough, looking down, there was blood trickling down her palm. Trying to blink back tears from the pain, she rushed the last street but she couldn't help but burst into tears when Finn's house came into view.

He must have seen her out the window or something because the door flung open as she approached and before she knew it she was inside, wrapped tightly in a towel and his arms.

"Rach? What the hell were you thinking? You should have called me!" Finn exclaimed, holding her tightly against his body.

"I – I d-didn't…" She attempted to talk but her teeth were chattering so much that Finn simply placed a finger to her lips and scooped her up so that he was carrying her bridal style.

Every time the house lit up with the lightning, Rachel buried her head in Finn's shoulder and he kissed her hair. This was repeated like a mantra until the couple reached Finn's room.

Once they were inside the room, he placed her down in the middle of his double bed. "I'm gonna help you change now alright?"

"N-n-no n-new c-lothes." Rachel managed to stutter out and Finn leant down to kiss her forehead.

"You left a pair of sweats and a hoodie here last week when you and Kurt had your sleepover." He grinned and tugged the clothes out of where he'd placed them in his drawer.

He then turned back to the shaking girl on his bed and he slowly unwrapped the towel from her frame. He then tugged off her dance sneakers and placed them at the foot of his bed. Next he tugged off her cute little shorts that she'd thrown on over her leotard and also her pathetic excuse for a cardigan. He then very slowly peeled off her black leotard and he had to smile when he realised that there were three little star cut outs down the side of the leotard. He peeled off her ballet tights along with her underwear and reached for her hoodie and sweats but stopped.

He scooped her up again and carried her into his bathroom. It was taking all of his strength to restrain himself with his naked girlfriend in his arms but he knew she needed him right now. He placed his tiny diva in the bathtub and used the shower head to wash her off with hot water.

Once he had finished she grinned up at him and rose slightly to capture his lips with hers.

"Better?" He asked and she nodded.

"Much."

He grinned and grabbed another towel for her to use. "Take however long you need baby."

Rachel grinned as Finn left the bathroom and she quickly changed into her hoodie and sweats, smiling when she realised that these were her favourite pair. She then sorted her hand out using the supplies in Finn's bathroom. She pulled her hair out of the neat bun from ballet and wrangled the tangles out before shoving it back up in a messy bun.

Finn's face lit up when she walked out of the bathroom and Rachel grinned as she settled on his lap.

"Okay, promise me something. Next time, you call me."

"Definitely."

"Finn?" Carole's voice travelled through the door and she knocked.

"Come in Mom." Finn replied, Rachel moving off his lap.

"Ah Rachel, you're here. Good. Your dads just called me. Of course you can stay here this week sweetheart." Carole smiled at her son's girlfriend.

"Thank you Mrs Hummel." Rachel grinned and stood to hug the woman.

Finn grinned but felt himself smirk as he realised what his mom had just said. Rachel was staying at their house, all week long.

"Oh, you can wipe that smirk off your face mister. Rachel's fathers have entrusted me and I can assure you that she will be staying with Kurt, in his room." Carole raised her eyebrows at her son.

"But Mom!"

"Of course Mrs Hummel, I would never betray your hospitality." Rachel smiled brightly.

"How many times do I have to tell you sweetie? Call me Carole." The older woman grinned and hugged the young girl again. "Dinner will be ready in a couple of hours, Finn take the poor girl home to get something other than sweatpants."

With that she left and Finn did as he was told.

Yep, summer was going to be great.


	2. Pick Up Your Phone

Finn woke up to the sound of laughter coming from downstairs.

"Kurt! Oh my god!" He heard his girlfriend's voice through her laughter and he had to smile.

He dragged himself out of bed and jumped in the shower, dressing quickly.

His mom gave him an incredulous look when he walked into the kitchen.

"Finn? Are you feeling okay? It's seven o'clock, in the morning." Kurt spoke from his seat at the island.

Rachel giggled from her seat next to him and Finn grinned at her. He sat down next to her and she smiled her million watt smile at him. "Good morning Finn."

"Morning Beautiful." He winked and kissed her quickly, flipping Kurt off as he made his disgust vocal.

"Well, you may as well appreciate her now." The diva spoke once the couple parted and Finn looked confusedly at his girlfriend.

"We're going shopping with the other Glee girls today." Rachel grinned but Finn pouted. "Don't look at me like that, we've had this planned for months. They're all intent on 'maturing my wardrobe'."

Finn frowned. "I like your clothes." He fiddled with the hem on her pretty floral dress.

"Okay, we have to go." Kurt spoke, standing from his seat.

"I'll see you later." Rachel grinned and stood too.

Finn grabbed her hand and tugged her towards him so she was stood in-between his legs. "One last kiss."

He pouted and she laughed, obliging.

"Elle, seriously." Kurt spoke, throwing his hands in the air and causing Rachel to giggle at his dramatizing.

"Kurt, what did you just call her? Her name is Rachel." Finn looked from the girl in his arms to his brother in confusion.

"Yes, I know Finn. But you called dibs on Rach, so I claimed the second half of her name. Plus, she's the only person I know who can belt out the last note in So Much Better." Kurt grinned and he and Rachel did their weird handshake thing.

"I'll see you later Finn." She pecked his lips once more before moving out of his embrace and leaving the house with Kurt.

"Okay Diva." Mercedes turned to Rachel at Lima Mall. "Where do you usually shop?"

"I don't really know, my dads buy most of my clothes."

"Well that explains a lot." Quinn piped up. "Okay Rachel, welcome to Forever 21."

A few hours later, everyone was sat in the food court at the mall and they were all weighed down with bags, Rachel even more so. After Forever 21, they'd hit up all the usual places; Anthropologie, Urban Outfitters, H&amp;M, Old Navy and American Apparel. They'd even spent a while in Victoria's Secret and PINK. After that, they'd scouted the few vintage stores before collapsing across two tables in the food court.

"Well, how's that for a whole new wardrobe Berry?" Santana asked, looking at the mountain of bags surrounding Rachel.

"I know, I may have to ask for an extension on my closet." Rachel replied and they all laughed, digging into their food.

Rachel pulled out her phone but before she could check it, Kurt snatched it out of her hands. "Uh uh, no Finn today. Oh my God, you have sixteen text messages from him."

The girls all burst out laughing and begged Kurt to read them.

"Okay." He made his way through the messages and even Rachel was busting a gut as the texts became more and more desperate.

_Hey baby, hope you're having fun with the girls. Love you x_

_Indulge yourself baby, you need to relax x_

_Can't wait to see what you bought, fashion show later? X_

_Not that kind of fashion show obviously x_

_You know unless you want to? X_

_Okay, it's fine just ignore me x_

_It's not like I'm just sat here waiting for you to answer or anything baby x_

_Okay, sorry Rach, that was mean. I love you x_

_You ok? Been a few hours, call me if you need me x_

_Freaking out here slightly Rach x_

_Okay, Kurt's probably confiscated your phone or some shit like that x_

_Baby __ x_

_I miss you __ x_

_You're so sexy Rach and amazing x_

_I love you x_

_I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you x_

"Okay, text him back before I puke at how sickening the two of you are." Kurt handed Rachel her phone back and she stuck her tongue out at him.

"Okay, then I guess you won't mind if I open up yours and Blaine's conversations." Rachel grinned, reaching out for Kurt's phone which he quickly snatched away. "See?"

"Berry, just text the orca so that we can get out of this conversation." Santana injected, her eyes rolling.

_I'm fine Finn, sorry but we've been way too busy for phones. I'm definitely up for a fashion show, except a few things. We did head to VS ;) I love you too x_

"We really need a slumber party soon." Tina grinned, looking around at the girls.

"How about tonight?" Kurt's face lit up. "Rachel's already staying at mine anyway because her dads are out of town."

"Sounds perfect Kurt." Quinn grinned.

"Okay, let's disperse at meet at mine say 8?"

They all agreed and headed their separate ways. As Kurt and Rachel reached Kurt's car, her phone went off.

_It's fine, I just got a little worried __ Sounds fantastic, you little tease ;) Love you more x_

When they pulled up outside the house, Finn came out to help with bags. "Geez Rach, did you buy the whole mall?"

"Almost." Kurt grinned and Rachel laughed.

"Hey Rach." Finn pulled her off to the side once they were settled in the kitchen with the bags stored downstairs in Kurt's room. "I was wondering if maybe once Mom and Burt were asleep tonight, maybe you could sneak into my room. Cause truth be told, I'm going crazy knowing your so close to me."

She grinned and almost melted in his arms. "That would be…"

"No can do." Kurt piped up from his seat at the island. "The slumber party Elle? We literally organised half an hour ago."

"Of course, sorry Kurt." She turned back to Finn. "Perhaps tomorrow?"

"Seriously, I haven't seen you all day."

"And us Gleeks haven't seen her all week. Anyway, she's all yours for…" He checked his watch. "Five hours."

"Five?" Rachel looked confusedly at the clock. "Kurt we said 8."

"Yes but we need to prepare at that takes at least an hour."

"I'll take it." Finn grinned and winked.

"Come on." Rachel took his hand and led him from the room. She stopped before the entrance to the basement and told him to wait.

When she emerged she was carrying a pink bag with the words VICTORIA'S SECRET printed on the side and it took all Finn had to not throw her over his shoulder and carry her up the stairs.

"I believe a fashion show was promised."


	3. The Annual Hummel Cookout

"Okay, I'll see you later alright?" Finn asked as he pulled up outside the dance studio. "Call me if the times change."

"Finn are you sure? I know that you're planning on hanging out with Noah today and –"

"Rachel! What if it rains again? I don't want you getting sick and we have the cookout tonight. Anyways, you're far more important than video games and Puck."

She smiled brightly and leant over to kiss him. "Okay, I'll text you. I love you."

"I love you too, have a good time." He waited until she entered the studio before starting up his truck and driving away.

He decided against going to Puck's and took Puck's reply of _'You're so whipped man'_ with a smile.

Instead he went home and helped Burt set up for the annual Hummel cookout that was taking place that evening. Most of Burt and Kurt's family were coming down and that meant a lot of kids so Finn and Kurt set about removing all breakable objects from communal rooms.

At around three Finn's phone buzzed and he smiled when it lit up with a text from Rachel.

Rach :_ Hey Finn, going to be a little later than arranged, can you pick me up at four? I love you x_

He checked the time before texting back. _Sure baby, I'll be there in 45. I love you too x_

Kurt grinned at him. "Do you know how much your face lights up when you hear from her?"

"Shut up." Finn blushed but grinned again when she replied.

Rach : _Thanks baby, see you soon x_

Finn didn't realise that Kurt had moved so her could see his phone.

"Baby? Really? You two are sickening."

Finn rolled his eyes and continued with the task for another half an hour.

"Okay, I gotta go pick Rachel up, be back soon." He yelled into the house from the door.

"Alright Finn." Was his mother's reply and he smiled before jumping in his truck.

When he arrived he was slightly early so he pulled out his phone. _Hey baby, I'm outside x_

A few seconds later, his phone lit up and she'd replied. _Okay, still going, come in and watch? X_

Finn grinned and climbed out of his truck, heading into the dance studio.

"Hey Finn." The girl behind the reception smiles and he smiles back.

Shit, what was her name? Alice? No. Alicia? No. Alyssa! That was it!

"Hey Alyssa."

"Rachel's in studio three, they're just finishing up. You can go sit in if you want."

"Sure, thanks Alyssa."

He made his way down the corridor and into the studio with a big three on the door.

There was around ten students in the studio and they were all stood in partners. Finn headed over to where there were a few seats for rides that had arrived early. There was a middle aged woman sat in one so he left a seat between them and sat down.

Turning his head back to the studio, he saw Rachel smile brightly at him and he grinned back. When she looked back towards the mirrors, he looked her up and down with a grin on his face. She looked fantastic in leotards.

"Okay guys 5, 6, 7, 8…" The teacher shouts and after 8 the students start to move. Finn can't help but smile as he watches Rachel spin and leap around the room. She was so amazing.

Once the song finished, the teacher turned back to the group and smiled. "Well done today everyone, I'll see you all next week."

They begin to split and Rachel rushed over to Finn, jumping into his arms, laughing.

"Hey baby, you were so good out there."

"Thank you Finn, I'm just gonna grab my bag." She pecked his cheek and ran off to the other side of the room, picking up her fuchsia pink bag before returning to him. "Okay, you ready to go?"

"Sure." He took her hand and lead her out of the building.

"Miss Rachel! Miss Rachel!"

The couple turned towards the sound and see a little girl of around six running towards them.

"Hey Ellie." Rachel smiled and bent down to embrace the girl when she barrelled into her.

"Look!" The kid exclaimed and slid down into the splits with a great big grin on her face.

"Oh my goodness! Well done Ellie, that's amazing!" Rachel grinned proudly at the little girl and hugged her again. "I'll see you next week."

"See you Miss Rachel." With that the kid ran off again and Rachel stood up, turning back towards Finn.

"You're amazing, you know that right?" He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and kissed her hair.

"This one guy's told me a few times." She grinned and jumped into his truck. Literally, she had to jump.

They soon arrived back at Finn's house and headed inside.

"Hey Diva." Kurt greeted his best friend with a hug.

"Hey, I'm gonna go shower and change."

Around half an hour later, she wandered back downstairs in a denim shirt tucked into a pair of white lace shorts. She'd thrown her hair up into a messy bun and Finn decided that he loved summer.

He told her this she laughed, throwing her head back. "You just like shorts."

"Only on you." He pulled her close to him and kissed her, smiling into the kiss.

"Finn!" His mom's voice travelled through the house and the couple pulled apart.

"Yeah Mom?"

A few hours later, there were around fifty people stood in the back garden, scattered around. Some of them were holding drinks, some were laughing, and some were running around.

"So you're the esteemed Rachel Berry?"

Rachel turned around to see that it was an elderly man who had spoken and smiled brightly. "Erm, yes."

"It's lovely to meet you, I'm Donald, Kurt's grandfather. I've heard so much about you between Kurt and Finn." He extended his hand and Rachel shook it blushing.

"It's lovely to meet you too, I think Kurt's mentioned you once or twice."

"Speaking of which, where is my grandson?" Donald asked, looking around the garden.

Rachel panicked, she'd promised Kurt that she'd cover for him while he and Blaine caught up in his room. "You know, I haven't seen him in a while."

"Oh well, I'll catch him later." Rachel breathed a sigh of relief.

"Daddy! Who are you interrogating now?" A middle aged woman made her way up to the pair and smiled.

"I'm not interrogating her." Donald defended.

The woman laughed and extended her hand. "I'm Alice, Burt's sister. I don't think I've seen you before."

"I'm not family. I'm Rachel Berry, Finn's girlfriend and Kurt's best friend." Rachel smiled and shook Alice's hand. "Ah, speak of the devil."

"There you are, I've been looking everywhere. It must be because you're so tiny." Finn laughed, wrapping his arm around her.

"Alright Mr I'm Taller than Everybody." Rachel replied, slapping him lightly on the shoulder.

"Hey Alice, Hey Donald." Finn addressed the people standing in front of the couple with a smile.

"Good to see you Finn, your mom was just telling me about how your Glee club went to Nationals this year. That's amazing!" Alice smiled up at the boy.

"Yeah, getting to see New York and perform on a stage there was just amazing, although _someone_ performed on a better stage than the rest of us." He raised his eyebrows as he looked down at his girlfriend.

"Hey! It was Kurt's idea." She turned towards the other pair to explain. "Kurt convinced me to sneak into the theatre where Wicked is performed and the janitor very kindly allowed us to sing on the stage."

"Wow! That's amazing!" Alice smiled. "So what songs did you sing? For nationals I mean."

"Actually, we wrote our own." Rachel smiled.

"Really?" Donald asked, intrigued.

"Yeah. Rach and I did a duet and then we had a group number." Finn explained.

"You forgot something!" Kurt's unforgettable falsetto voice sounded behind them. "You forgot the kiss that missed, at least that's what the YouTube video is called."

"Wait, there's a video of us kissing on YouTube?" Finn asked his brother.

"Pay attention Finn, yes. Hi Grandpa. Hi Aunt Alice." Kurt smiled, hugging his relatives.

"Hi Kurt, we'd love to hear these songs." Alice looked expectantly at the trio.

"Well, there isn't enough of us for Light Up The World but I'm sure these two wouldn't mind an impromptu performance of Pretending." Kurt smiled and winked at his best friend who he knew wouldn't pass up an opportunity for performance.

"Sure, why not?" Finn grinned.

"Great, I'll grab Blaine and his guitar." Kurt went to rush off but turned back at Rachel's voice.

"Kurt! Don't grab too hard!" She giggled and Finn burst out laughing. The pair only laughed more when Kurt glared at them.

Five minutes later, Donald and Alice had gathered most of the family around in a circle. Finn and Rachel were sat on the ground in the middle and Kurt's three year old cousin, Sienna, who had taken a shine to Rachel, had settled herself in the diva's lap.

Blaine began to strum and Finn smiled at Rachel.

_Face to face and heart to heart  
We're so close yet so far apart  
I close my eyes I look away  
That's just because I'm not okay  
But I hold on, I stay strong  
Wondering if we still belong._

The two kept eye contact as they sang. The people around them grinned at how wrapped up they were in each other.

_Will we ever say the words we're feeling  
Reach down underneath and tear down all the walls  
Will we ever have our happy ending?  
Or will we forever only be pretending?  
Will we always, always, always be pretending_

Kurt started to clap in time and the family all joined in, causing Finn and Rachel to grin.

_How long do I fantasize  
Make believe that it's still alive  
Imagine that I am good enough  
And we can choose the ones we love  
But I hold on, I stay strong  
Wondering if we still belong,_

Kurt frowned, that wasn't part of the Nationals song, but Finn and Rachel just grinned and continued singing.

_Will we ever say the words we're feeling  
Reach down underneath and tear down all the walls  
Will we ever have our happy ending?  
Or will we forever only be pretending?  
Will we always, always, always be_

Finn stood up and walked the short space over to where Rachel was sat. On her part, she moved little Sienna off her lap and stood up, taking Finn's offered hand.

_Keeping secrets safe  
Every move we make  
Seems like no ones letting go  
And it's such a shame  
Cause if you feel the same  
How am I supposed to know?_

They began to circle each other slowly, just like at Nationals but this time they were smiling and their hands were still entwined between them.

_Will we ever say the words we're feeling  
Reach down underneath and tear down all the walls  
Will we ever have our happy ending?  
Or will we forever only be pretending?  
Will we always, always, always be  
Will we always, always, always be  
WIll we always, always, always be pretending?_

Kurt joined in to sing the backing vocals so that Finn and Rachel could take the overlap. They finished staring into each other's eyes like they had on that stage.

"Okay, we do not need a repeat of everything." Kurt cut in and Blaine laughed, placing his guitar on the ground.

Rachel giggled, and leant her head on Finn's chest, feeling his arms encircle her waist. "I have the feeling we're going to be apologising a lot."

"I don't know why, I thought it was awesome." Finn smiled and Rachel giggled.

"What on earth are you talking about?" One of Kurt's relatives asked, her face scrunched up in confusion.

"After that song, Finn decided that was the perfect moment to kiss Rachel for the first time in months. You know, on stage, at a national competition, in front of like 200 people." Kurt explained and rolled his eyes when his female relatives started cooing.

"That's so cute!" 15 year old Sarah, one of Kurt's cousins, exclaimed with a grin on her face.

Finn grinned and kissed Rachel's forehead. "Come on, food's ready."

Sure enough, Burt was gesturing for everyone to make their way over to the barbecue.

A few hours later, everyone had settled down. Those with younger kids had headed home and those who remained scattered across the yard. The four teens settled in a circle on one of the blankets laid out on the grass. Kurt had laid his head down on Blaine's lap whilst Rachel was sat in between Finn's legs, softly stroking his arms which were wrapped around her.

"Hey Finn." The four turned to see a girl around their age stood there. Her peroxide hair had been piled onto the top of her head and her shorts barely covered her butt.

"Oh hey…" Finn stopped as he'd forgotten her name.

"Tia." She looked Rachel up and down with a look of distain. "And you are?"

"Oh, I'm Rachel Berry, Finn's girlfriend." Rachel said with a fake smile on her face.

"Finn, you never told me you had a girlfriend." Tia turned to the teenager.

"It's a new development." Kurt spoke up, eyeing his second cousin.

"Yeah well you know where to find me Finn." She winked and walked away, over sashaying her hips.

"Ugh, Kurt, please tell me you're not related to that?" Rachel wrinkled her nose and Finn laughed, pulling her closer.

"Unfortunately she's my second cousin. See the peroxided middle aged woman standing by the barbecue? That's her mother."

"Oh wow." Blaine stated, running his fingers through Kurt's hair.

"Yep. She's never been married but Dad looked on her Facebook and she had 34 boyfriends in one year."

"Wow, that's impressive." Rachel laughed, turning her head slightly to kiss Finn's neck.

He hummed in approval and kissed the top of her head, before lowering his head to place light kisses on her shoulder.

She soon turned slightly in his arms and curled into his chest, her eyes closing. She hummed slightly in approval as Finn began to run his fingers through her long hair and rub small circles on her knee.

After a few minutes she was fast asleep and Kurt looked up.

"Is she sleeping?" He asked, looking at his best friend.

"Out like a bulb, or whatever it is." Finn replied, smiling down at her. She looked so peaceful when she slept with all the worry gone from her face.

"We should take her inside." Blaine added. "I'm not sure how comfortable this blanket is."

"Good point and I'm tired anyway, I think it's time to call it a night. Come on Finn and bring Sleeping Beauty." Kurt stood up and stretched, before heading for the house.

Finn carefully scooped Rachel into his arms and carried her inside, smiling as she snuggled herself closer to him unconsciously.

He placed her in the spare bed in Kurt's room and kissed her forehead. "Night Rach."

With a smile, he left and headed into his own room.

This was turning out to be the best summer ever.


	4. Slap on the Romance

It had been a week since the cookout and Rachel fathers had returned home the previous day. Kurt had spent the day with her, throwing away almost three quarters of her closet and replacing with the things they had bought on their outing.

Finn woke up to the sound of Rachel's voice. She was singing, no wait, she wasn't singing, well yes she was but it was his ringtone for her. He quickly picked up his phone and answered.

"Hey baby." He smiled and then felt stupid because she couldn't see him.

"Good morning Finn. I have some bad news. I know we planned on spending today together but the dance studio just called me and I need to go in and help with rehearsal. I'm sorry." He could hear the disappointment in her voice and he spoke and he sighed, they were going to make sugar cookies.

"Hey don't worry, it's okay. Tell you what, I'll pick you up from yours at eight." He grinned, he knew just where to take her.

"Okay, what should I wear?"

"I don't know, something pretty." He grinned. "I'll see you at eight Rach."

"Okay, I love you."

"I love you too."

"Bye."

"Bye."

With that they both hung up and Finn got to work, he was going to make this the best date ever.

At around noon, Kurt wandered into his room. "Hey Finn?"

"What's up bro?" The taller of the two replied, not looking up from what he was doing.

"Rachel's been texting me like crazy, she freaking out over what to wear. Can you tell me what you're planning?" Kurt sat down and looked around at the abundance of photos.

"As long as you don't tell her."

"Promise."

Finn explained his plan to his brother and grinned as Kurt teared up. "Finn that's beautiful and I know the exact outfit."

He left to go text Rachel back and Finn headed downstairs to put the finishing touches to his surprise.

At eight o'clock sharp, Finn pulled into the Berry's front drive, smiling when he saw that Rachel was waiting outside on the porch swing.

"Hey." He smiled once he'd left his truck. When she stood up, Finn couldn't help but stare. Kurt had done an excellent job. She was wearing a strapless white dress that was covered in little pink flowers and attached green leaves. Her hair had been curled and fell down over her chest. She was wearing a pair of white wedges and holding a denim jacket in her hands. "Wow Rach, just wow."

She giggled and jumped into his truck. He smiled and climbed back in, driving back to his house.

"Finn, why are we at your house?" She asked, confused.

"Trust me." He smiled and helped her out before leading her through the gate and into the backyard.

"Oh my God, Finn."

He grinned at her reaction. He had strung fairy lights up in the trees as well as hanging mason jars with tea lights from the branches. Falling from string tied to the trees were over fifty pictures of the two of them. In the middle of the yard was a blanket, on which Finn had set up a picnic complete with scattered flower petals.

She walked over to the pictures and turned one around to face her, her face splitting into a grin when she saw it. It was one of the two of them on the bus on the way back from Regionals sophomore year. Rachel was holding one of his hands in both of her and he was gazing into her eyes with the dopiest grin on his face.

She turned the next one around and laughed. It was taken during Rocky Horror and the pair of them were pulling brain dead faces.

He walked over to the gazebo and pressed play on the iPod dock. Rachel began to tear up as Faithfully played softly throughout the garden. Finn noticed this and rushed over.

"Oh I'm sorry Rach, if you don't like it we can go to Breadstix."

"Shh, I love it Finn. You're so amazing." She smiled and kissed him, wrapping her arms around his neck.

He smiled when they pulled apart and led her over to the blanket, opening the bottle of sparkling cider.

They began to munch their way through the food, Rachel telling Finn about her day at the dance studio and him telling her about Blaine coming over for dinner the day before.

Once they'd finished, Finn produced a tub of chocolate covered strawberries and Rachel grinned when he added, "It's vegan chocolate."

She took one and held it up to his lips. He bit into it and munched before taking her hand and licking the residue chocolate off of her fingers. He then offered her one and she did the same. They continued like this until all the strawberries were gone and they collapsed laughing in each other's arms.

"Well that was the cheesiest thing I think we've ever done." Rachel laughed, burying her head in Finn's shoulder.

"Yep but a little cheese never hurt nobody." He grinned as Rachel burst into laughter again at the ridiculous accent he put on.

Rachel laid down on her back and smiled. "The stars are so beautiful."

Finn laid down too and took her hand, smiling sweetly at the girl lying next to him.

He just couldn't believe that after everything, she still loved him and she still wanted to be with him. Sure she'd made mistakes too but he been an absolute dickhead and she still loved him.

"You're amazing." He spoke as he gazed at her.

A blush covered her cheeks and she smiled sweetly. "Thank you Finn."

"No seriously, I've been so lost for months but then you show up and everything is suddenly clear again."

"I feel the exact same way." She smiled at him and he felt like he could die happy.

"Rachel Berry lost?" He raised an eyebrow and chuckled.

"Well, lost without you." She smiled and leant over, capturing his lips.

Okay no, now he could die happy.


	5. Missing Parents and Sick Ten Year Olds

The 4th of July had been one of the best Rachel had ever experienced. The Glee club had all met up at the park and Mr Schue had barbecued for everyone. They'd played tag football and generally just enjoyed the sun and the company.

The day after, Rachel woke up late and stumbled down the stairs to see a note from her fathers.

_Good morning Star!_

_Unfortunately the case has pulled your Dad and I back to New York for a few days. We're trusting you in the house and we're sure you'll maintain everything properly. If you need anything, call Carole or pop into the Martins next door._

_Love you and see you in a few days,_

_Daddy_

Rachel grinned and grabbed her phone, texting Finn the good news before making some breakfast.

Her phone rang as she finished and was putting her plate in the dishwasher. She grinned when she saw it was Finn and answered straight away.

"Hi Finn." She smiled as she made her way into her bedroom and then her closet, staring at her new wardrobe.

"Hey baby, I got your text. When can I see you?" She grinned at his straight to the point attitude.

"How about I come over in around an hour?"

"But I thought I was coming to yours, there's people at my house Rach!" Rachel had to giggle at the slightly whining tone in his voice.

"I know but I haven't seen your mother in ages and we can always come to mine later."

"Alright, I'll see you soon."

"Goodbye Finn." They hung up and Rachel turned back to her closet, choosing the perfect outfit.

Around half an hour later, Rachel was stood on the steps of the Hummel-Hudson household dressed in a floral dress and pink flats, her hair in curls down her back. It was Kurt who opened the door.

"Oh hey Elle, I'm assuming you and Finn are doing something." Her friend smiled, hugging her tightly.

"Yes but I'm glad I got to see you." She grinned at her best friend before he turned to the stairs.

"FINN! RACHEL'S HERE!"

At this Carole came out of the living room and smiled at her son's girlfriend. "Rachel, honey!"

Rachel grinned as Carole embraced her. She loved Carole, she was feeling more and more like her own mother every day. "Hi Carole, how are you?"

"Oh I'm fine. How are you? Your dads called and mentioned they had to go away again. You know you're always welcome here honey."

"Thank you Carole, your hospitality means everything to me."

"It's nothing honey." The woman grinned and kissed the teenager's cheek, rubbing her arm as Finn appeared at the top of the stairs. "I know your dads can't help it but I worry about you in that big house all alone."

"Hi Rach." Finn grinned as he came rushing down the stairs, tugging her into his arms.

"Rachel?" The young girl turned towards Carole. "I'd feel a lot better if Finn stayed with you this weekend, I won't tell your dads because I know they wouldn't allow it but I hate the thought of you all alone."

Rachel grinned and hugged Carole, kissing her cheek. "Thank you Carole."

"Seriously Mom?" Finn asked, wrapping his arms around Rachel's waist.

"Yes as long as you behave yourself and don't take advantage of the situation. Rachel's a special girl and you better treat her with the proper respect."

Rachel grinned as Carole reached up and ruffled Finn's hair, having to stand right on the tips of her toes to do so.

Suddenly, Rachel's phone began to ring and she dug it out of her pocket, frowning at the contact.

"Noah? Are you alright?" She paused and her demeanour changed, smiling. "Ah, hello Debbie, what can I help you with?" She nodded and glanced apologetically at Finn. "Oh bless her. Yes of course I'll come, it's no worry but do you mind if I bring Finn?" She grinned. "Excellent. We'll be there in around ten minutes. Don't worry Debbie, I know what Noah's like. Okay bye."

Finn raised an eyebrow, grabbing his keys and leading her out to the truck.

"Sarah's sick and Debbie has to go to work. She doesn't trust Noah to keep an eye on her and I don't blame her." Rachel explained, climbing into the truck.

"I don't either, I can't imagine Puck's great with a sick ten year old." Finn laughed, rolling his eyes at the image.

Rachel laughed. "No, I'm sure he's rather inept."

They soon pulled up at the Puckerman household and knocked on the door, it swinging open to reveal Debbie Puckerman.

"Oh Rachel, thank you so much. She's upstairs. I've got to dash, thank you too Finn." She grinned and ushered them inside before running out the door.

"Oh hey guys." Puck grinned, entering the living room. He hugged Finn and kissed Rachel's cheek, winking at her. "Hey Princess."

"Good morning Noah, how is your sister?" Rachel asked, removing her jacket and laying it over a chair. Finn was surprised at how comfortable she seemed in Puck's house and reminded himself to ask his friend about that later.

"She's alright but I'm terrible when she's sick. I always forget and end up swearing at her. Thanks for coming Princess." Puck grinned and rubbed Rachel's arm, making Finn even more suspicious. And what was up with the Princess?

"It's no worry Noah, I'll go and check on her now." With a smile and a kiss to Finn's cheek, she skipped up the stairs, leaving the two boys alone.

"Dude, what the fuck was that?" Finn turned on his best friend, slapping him on the arm.

"What the fuck was what?" The shorter boy replied, flopping on the couch.

"What the fuck was that with Rach? Princess, really?"

"Finn, I've known Rachel since the cradle and I always used to call her Princess. After you were a douchebag last year, we grew close again. She's like a fucking sister to me. Back off dude." Puck rolled his eyes and flicked on the TV, relaxing as he gazed at the football game.

Finn didn't know how to reply so he trained his eyes at the TV set too, relaxing against the back of the couch.

Both of them got lost in the game and they didn't realise a couple of hours had passed until Rachel came down the stairs with a bundle of blankets assumed to be Sarah.

"Shouldn't you be in bed Sarah?" Puck asked, jumping off the couch so that his sister could lie down.

"It's boring in there, I don't have a TV and I want to watch Tangled!" She pouted causing Finn to chuckle, standing from his spot as well. "Rachel? Will you sit with me?"

The older girl nodded and settled with Sarah's head in her lap, her hands pulling through the soft curls. Puck loaded the DVD quickly and handed his sister the remote with a wink which elicited a giggle. Finn settled on the floor in front of the couch, leaning back against Rachel's legs.

"I'mma get a drink. You want a KoolAid Sarah? You guys want anything?" Puck asked, looking at the couple.

"I'll have a KoolAid, thanks man." Finn nodded.

"Just some water please Noah." Rachel grinned, pressing play on the DVD.

They spent the next couple of hours watching the Disney film with Rachel and Sarah singing along.

"I'll let you guys get home. Mom will be home in half an hour." Puck explained after the film finished.

"Alright, thanks Puck." Finn grinned and fist bumped his best friend.

"I'll see you at temple Sarah." Rachel grinned, embracing the young girl.

"Bye Rachel." She grinned sweetly and snuggled back down into the blankets.

"See you Princess." Puck grinned, hugging the diva.

"Goodbye Puck, thank you for your hospitality."

"Thanks for coming, I'll see you around."

The couple left quickly, Finn pulling into Rachel's drive and taking her inside.

"Finn, I have something to tell you." Rachel said shyly once they were settled on her bed. Finn's mind went into overdrive, since when was Rachel shy about anything?

"What's up baby?" He asked, holding her hands.

"Finn, I'm ready."


	6. A Night at the Alley

_Chirp._

_Chirp. Chirp._

Finn stretched as he woke up, smiling when he saw Rachel curled up in a ball next to him. She was gorgeous. Her long hair flowed behind her, a couple of strands knotted together and the sheet which she'd pulled tight around her throughout the night covered the new limits they'd explored.

It was amazing and Finn was just sad that it wasn't his first time; that he'd thrown that away over petty jealousy.

Rachel gave a moan as she woke; stretching cutely like a cat. "Hi." She smiled, a blush coming across her cheeks.

"Hey." He grinned back, feeling slightly awkward.

"Last night was amazing." She grinned, sitting up and holding the sheet around her chest.

"It really was." He grinned.

"I'm going to get in the shower. There's food downstairs. Unless…" She turned towards him with a shy smile on her face. "Unless you want to join me?"

"There is nothing I would love more."

After an escapade in the shower, Finn tugged on some clothes and headed downstairs into the kitchen, looking through the cupboards for something edible.

He thought back to how they almost hadn't had this. They almost hadn't gotten back together. That perfect night happening had all depended on Finn kissing Rachel on a stage in New York, that was insane.

"Finn? Are you alright? You've been staring at that box of cereal for like five minutes." Rachel's voice snapped Finn out of his thought process and he turned to see her standing there, looking as beautiful as ever. She wore a floral top that ended under her ribs, leaving a small strip of skin exposed before the black skirt flowed out from her waist. "What? Do I have something on my face?"

"You're beautiful." He smiled and grabbed her hand, using it to tug her close to his body.

"Aww Finn." She smiled, red creeping up her cheeks. "You're very handsome."

He grinned and kissed her hair, causing her to smile. He did it a lot and Rachel loved it, it made her feel safe and cared for.

"Come on, let's make some breakfast."

They passed the majority of the day just hanging out. Lying on the couch with her head in his lap and his fingers running through her hair.

She called Kurt at lunchtime to see if he and Blaine wanted to go bowling that evening but the conversation soon changed course.

"You had sex didn't you?" Kurt's falsetto voice came through her phone and Rachel once again wondered how her best friend knew her so well.

"How the hell do you know that?" She sighed before replying, looking over at Finn who was watching the TV. "Yes, it happened last night."

"Last night? Why didn't you inform me before? This is monumental! How was it?" She had to hold the phone away from her ear to ensure her perfect hearing wouldn't be damaged.

"Amazing. It was so perfect."

"Okay, I don't want all the details Elle, that's my brother we're talking about." That made Rachel laugh as she imagined Kurt scrunching up his nose.

"Sorry. So we'll see you in a couple of hours?"

"Sure. God I can't believe Rachel Berry had sex before I did. I need to up my game."

Rachel laughed and hung up, re-entering the living room.

"They up for it?" Finn asked, pulling her down into his lap.

"Yes. We're meeting them at the bowling alley at six o'clock." Rachel relayed, leaning her head on Finn's shoulder.

"Great. Well Miss Berry, it seems we have some time on our hands."

"So it seems Mr Hudson. What ever shall we do?"

"I'm sure we can think of something."

They passed away the hours discovering even more than they had the night before and still managed to leave the house on time. Arriving at the bowling alley, Kurt and Blaine were already there with a lane booked and pizza ordered.

"Hi!" Rachel grinned hugging her best friend and his boyfriend.

"Hi!" Kurt grinned, tugging her into a seat next to him.

"You're early." She grinned, gratefully sipping the diet coke they'd ordered her.

"Yeah, we got bored so we thought we'd come and reserve a lane. Good thing we did, it's getting crowded." Blaine noted, pointing out that the alley was quickly filling up with people.

"Oh, we invited Mercedes and Sam. You guys don't mind right?" Kurt smiled, looking at his phone.

"Of course not, it'll be good to see them again." Rachel smiled, looking at Finn.

"Yeah, so are they like a thing?" Finn asked, slurping from his root beer.

"I don't really know but 'Cedes was calling it a triple date so I guess so." Kurt said, grinning at Rachel who squealed slightly. "You have to be cool Rachel!"

"I'm cool." She grinned but when Finn snorted they both burst into laughter.

"You two are nauseating." Kurt sighed, turning his nose up.

"We aim to please." Finn smirked and Rachel laughed again.

"We don't have enough chairs." Blaine stated, noticing that there was only five chairs.

"Oh, and they're nailed down so we can't steal one." Kurt sighed, looking around.

Rachel grinned and stood from her chair, walking around the table. Finn caught on and tugged her into his lap, wrapping his arms around her waist. "Problem solved." They said in unison and Kurt rolled his eyes whilst Blaine smiled.

"Again, nauseating."

But Kurt's thoughts were interrupted as Mercedes and Sam entered the alley hand in hand.

"Hey guys." Mercedes smiled as they approached, sliding into Rachel's recently vacated seat.

"Hi." Rachel smiled, her hand settling over Finn's on her thigh.

"Sup dude." Finn nodded at Sam who did the same back, sitting down.

"How are you?" Kurt asked, embracing Mercedes.

"Good, really good actually." She smiled at Sam and blushed.

"That's good." Rachel grinned, leaning back into Finn.

"Yeah, it is." Sam smiled, taking her hand again and interlocking their fingers. "So we doing boys against girls or three teams of couples?"

"Oh boys against girls I think. Rachel, Mercedes and I are ready to kick some butt." Kurt grinned as Finn and Sam shared a look.

"Yeah, good luck with that one Kurt. I don't know about Mercedes but Rach isn't the best bowler." Finn chuckled, raising an eyebrow when his girlfriend glared at him.

"I resent that statement Finn, I believe I have scored several strikes when we have been bowling previously." She huffed, wriggling in his lap.

"Yeah but that was with my help and I'm pretty boss at bowling." He grinned before lowering his voice to whisper in her ear. "Don't worry baby, your excellence in certain other departments makes up for it." She smirked and wriggled a little more in his lap, causing him to moan lowly in her ear. "Baby."

"Rachel, I gotta use the ladies room, come with?" Mercedes smiled, looking at the diva who grinned and nodded. She slid off Finn's lap and lightly kissed his ear, scraping her teeth slightly, before heading to the bathroom with Mercedes.

"What is up with you?" The taller girl asked, looking at the petite brunette.

"What do you mean?" Rachel's eyebrow's furrowed as she looked in the mirror, adjusting her bangs.

"You and Finn are normally all cutsie but you are all over that boy tonight." Mercedes smirked, applying some more makeup.

Rachel sighed and turned to face her friend. "Let's just say there's been a few developments in our relationship."

Mercedes' gasp echoed around the small room. "You had sex?! Oh my goodness!" The smaller girl blushed and giggled slightly, shushing the other diva. "How was it? Did it hurt?"

"It was amazing, seriously, just incredible. It did hurt, a lot but the pain was fleeting and all these emotions just took over." A sigh escaped her mouth as she thought about the previous night and how good it had felt.

Meanwhile, back at the table, Sam had noticed the difference too. "So, Rachel's very handsy today." He commented, raising an eyebrow at Finn.

Finn coughed and looked down, suddenly very interested in his hands. "Is she? I didn't notice a difference."

Kurt snorted and Finn glared at his brother, sending him a silent message to shut up. Luckily he was saved as the pizza showed up at their table. They all looked at each other as if to ask whether they should wait for the girls.

"Oh food's here, goody." Mercedes grinned, settling back into her seat. Finn lifted Rachel onto his lap and handed her a paper plate with a couple of slices of pizza on before picking up a piece of his own.

Once they finished eating, they moved onto the lane and began to bowl. The boys were thrashing Kurt, Mercedes and Rachel. Kurt wasn't much better than Rachel and Mercedes was pretty much dragging the other two along. On the last bowl, Rachel stepped up with pink ball in hand. Smirking, she used her other foot to pull the lace apart on her rented shoes. She put the ball down and bent over to tie the lace, hearing Finn groan behind her. She bowled the ball, gasping as all the pins came down. Mercedes wrapped her in a huge hug and Kurt joined in before stepping up to take their goes. Skipping to the seats, Rachel plopped herself in Finn's lap, seeing that Blaine and Sam were engaged in conversation.

"Did you see that, baby?" She smiled, wriggling in his lap slightly. "What was that about my skills?"

"I never said anything about your skills babe." He winked and tugged her closer. "That lace stunt? You are such a tease."

She grinned and turned her head into his neck, planting little kisses on the skin there. She occasionally scraped her teeth slightly or sucked lightly, causing Finn to moan softly. Smirking, she wriggled around a little and felt the reaction. "Finny, you need to calm down, we're in public."

She giggled as he glared at her. "Your fault, baby."

"RACHEL!" Mercedes shouted, gaining the diva's attention. "Stop fraternizing with the enemy!"

Rachel laughed and slid off Finn's lap, kissing his cheek before skipping back to her team, feeling his eyes on her as she left.

"Finn, it's your bowl. Finn? You've got it bad dude." Sam smirked, looking at his friend's besotted expression.

"What? Oh right yeah."

The boys won in the end but no one was really bothered by the end of the evening. They were all having fun and enjoying their time together.


	7. Be Careful

The next few weeks passed in a blur of dates and exploring new boundaries. Finn and Rachel were truly having the summer of their lives.

Around a month into the summer break, Finn found himself in the basement with Kurt, playing on his old PlayStation.

"Dude, this thing is so old, Crash Bandicoot was the game." Finn laughed as he drove the car around on the screen.

"The graphics are terrible." Kurt agreed, squinting at the screen. "I am aware of our childhood Finn, by the way."

"Well you know, my general philosophy with you is would Rachel know it." The taller boy grinned, thinking of his girlfriend's limited knowledge in anything to do with video games.

"Of course it is." Kurt rolled his eyes. "Speaking of which, where is the diva? I don't think you two have actually spent a day apart all summer."

"She's packing for her musical theatre camp." Finn explained, saddening as he thought of her being gone for two weeks. "She leaves in two days."

"I knew that but she hasn't packed yet? I honestly don't understand that girl sometimes."

Finn scoffed and resisted the urge to roll his eyes, his brother had been packed for their New York trip a month in advance. Their conversation was interrupted as Finn's phone rang, recognising the ringtone, he paused the game and answered. "Hey baby."

"Hi Finn." Her voice was smooth and silky as usual and filled with enthusiasm.

"How's the packing going?" He asked, giving Kurt the finger when he began to make kissing noises.

"Good, I'm almost done. I was wondering, do you want to do something tonight? My dads are away and you mentioned something about your parents being gone?" She grinned and he smiled too, he was hoping she'd ask something like that.

"Definitely baby, they're gone for the next few days. How about a movie night? I'll set up a fort in my room." He grinned, thinking about it.

"Sounds perfect Finn, I'll see you in an hour or so?"

"Okay Rach. I love you."

"I love you too Finn. Bye."

"Bye Rach."

"So we've got a fort to build?" Kurt grinned, turning off the TV.

"You don't have to help if you don't want to dude, it's cool." Finn grinned, looking at his brother.

"Oh, you'll need my expertise, I am amazing at making forts." The falsetto grinned, skipping up the stairs.

"Whatever you say Kurt."

Turns out, he was pretty boss at making forts and an hour later, they had built a fully functioning fort. Tent poles had been attached to the corners of Finn's bed and they'd draped sheets over there. The fairy lights from Finn's garden date had been strung up along the poles and illuminated the fort. They'd then filled it with blankets and pillows and set up the TV. It was pretty awesome. Kurt had plans with Blaine so he left about fifteen minutes before Rachel arrived.

The knock on the door startled Finn as he'd buried himself in a TV show about border control. Turning off the set, he rushed to open the door and smiled when he saw Rachel.

"Hi." She was dressed in a sky blue dress which fell to mid-thigh and cinched in at her waist. Her hair had been pulled back into a ponytail and she carried a plastic box.

"Hi baby, you look beautiful." He smiled and leant down to peck her lips. She smiled against him and stepped inside once he'd moved out the way.

"Thank you Finn, I made cookies." She grinned and handed him the box, chuckling as he tore into it like a ravenous animal.

"Mmm, s' m'ood m'baby." He said around a cookie, smiling his lopsided grin at her. She laughed and rolled her eyes, standing on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek.

"So I heard there was a fort?" She smiled, hanging her white cardigan on the coat rack.

"Hmm? Oh yeah, in my room." Finn grinned, excited to see her reaction. "Come with me."

He took her hand and led her up the stairs, being careful not to walk too fast. She'd often complained that his long legs meant that he walked at an abnormal pace and that she struggled to keep up with him. Entering his bedroom, he smiled proudly as he heard her gasp.

"Finn! It's beautiful!" She smiled, tentatively stepping towards the bed.

"Well Kurt really helped, it was his idea to add the fairy lights and I think that made it look loads better. Before it was just a bunch of sheets." He trailed off, a sheepish smile on his face.

"It was still your idea in the first place Finn, I love it." She grinned and stood on her toes to kiss his cheek. He grinned proudly and promptly swung her into his arms, lightly throwing her down in the fort.

"So what do you want to watch?" Finn asked, plopping down next to her and pulling her tight against his chest.

"Your movies are on the top shelf right?" Rachel grinned, slipping out of his arms and smirking at his pout. She quickly pulled his old stool from in front of his desk and stood on top, stretching on her toes to see the selection of DVDs.

"Be careful, baby." He said, standing as she lifted one foot off in an attempt to see higher. Doing this, she didn't notice the stall slowly slipping from underneath her foot until all of a sudden, she came tumbling down into a heap on the floor. Finn lurched out to catch her but he was too far away. They both heard the deafening crack as she landed.

Finn stared in disbelief for a moment until Rachel looked up and met his eyes, her own quickly filling with tears. At this he rushed to her, gathering her up in his arms and sitting on the bed with her in his lap.

"M-my ankle." She cried, sniffling into his chest. Finn looked down at it and had to resist the urge to throw up his lunch. It was twisted in a way that he didn't even know was humanly possible.

"Shh – come on. It'll be alright, baby but I think we need to go to the emergency room." He said, trying to keep his composure for the crying girl in his arms. He felt her nod against him and he lifted her up, holding her bridal style as he carried her to the car. He held her hand to entire way to the ER, speaking softly to her each time she squeaked in pain.

The next few hours passed in a blur of hospital rooms and clinical smells. It turned out that Rachel had broken her ankle, pretty badly at that and needed a cast. She'd chosen a light pink colour and they'd also issued her crutches which she'd turned her nose up at, eliciting a chuckle from Finn.

"How else are you planning on getting around, baby?" He'd reasoned and she'd relented after that, seeing his argument.

"So, um… Are you still gonna go to that camp?" Finn asked as they drove back to his house.

"Oh my goodness! I'd completely forgotten!" Rachel exclaimed, looking at him with wide eyes. She was still slightly out of it due to the pain medication they'd given her.

"Hey, don't worry, baby. Didn't you mention something about a wheelchair chick in that play you're doing?" He remembered her rambling on about the play the camp were putting on, something about a green witch and her friend.

"Nessa! Of course Finn! Granted it isn't a lead and I'd sort of hoped that I could land Elphaba but I guess you have to work with what you have."

He grinned and kissed her forehead quickly before returning his eyes to the road. When they arrived at his house, Finn carefully lifted her from the car and carried her inside to see Kurt pacing the living room.

"Oh my god Elle! What in the name of Broadway happened?!" Kurt exclaimed and Finn tried to not chuckle at his brother's use of words. Rachel however, let out a snort as Finn lowered her onto the sofa.

"I'm gonna go grab your crutches baby." He smiled, kissing her forehead before leaving the room again.

"What happened?" Kurt asked, sitting on the sofa next to his best friend and taking her hand.

"Well, I was stood on Finn's stall to see his DVDs on the top shelf and it flew out from underneath me. They gave me walking sticks." She giggled to Kurt as Finn walked back in carrying said 'walking sticks'.

"They're crutches baby. Don't worry, the medication should be out of your system soon." The taller boy smiled, sitting down on the other side of Rachel after grabbing a chair to elevate her leg.

"Medication?" Kurt asked, looking at the diva who was giggling about nothing.

"Yeah, she was in quite a bit of pain so they gave her a pretty big dosage. She's pretty giggly." He explained as Rachel lolled back against him. "Whoa baby, steady on."

"Oh! Finn! I forgot to ask the doctor about sex!" She exclaimed and Kurt choked slightly – half amused, half mortified.

"The drugs removed her filter too?" Kurt chuckled, moving away from the conversation.

"Rach baby, public place. My brother, your best friend, right there." Finn smiled, chuckling slightly as she pouted.

All of a sudden the front door opened and voices drifted through the house. "Kurt?! Kurt?!"

"Mom?" Finn asked, looking at his brother who was sighing.

"I told them not to come home!" He exclaimed before turning towards the door. "In here!"

"What the hell is going on?" Finn asked, looking at Kurt. "I thought they were away for the weekend."

"They were but I called them when I couldn't find you guys. I told them not to come back but as per usual, they didn't listen." The smaller brother sighed as their parents came rushing into the room.

"Finn? Finn! Oh thank goodness you're alright!" Carole sighed, hugging her son before she noticed the cast on Rachel's leg. "Sweetie? Oh my goodness, what happened honey?"

She moved to occupy Kurt's previous spot and pulled Rachel into her arms, stroking a hand over her long brown hair. The diva smiled and relaxed into the embrace. "I broke my ankle falling off Finn's stall."

"Oh honey, is that where you were?" Rachel nodded into her chest and Carole hugged the brunette tighter. "Are your dads home?"

Rachel shook her head and before she knew it, tears were pouring down her face and landing in Carole's shirt. "S-sorry." She stuttered but Carole shushed her and held her close, her hands softly rubbing the smaller girl's back.

"Don't you dare apologise sweetheart, you know I'm here whenever you need me, whatever you need me for. Right now, you need a mother so that's what I'm going to do." She smiled, looking at her son over his girlfriend's shoulder. "Finn, go make up your bed with some new sheets."

The teenager looked at his girlfriend and rubbed her back before doing as his mother asked, hugging Burt on the way out.


	8. Phone Conversations

Finn sighed as he entered his bedroom, flopping down on the bed dramatically. Rachel had been gone for a week and he was going mad, there were only so many Halo marathons you can have.

"Finn?" Kurt's voice came from outside the door and Finn grunted, letting his brother know it was alright to enter. The smaller boy did so and snorted at the scene in front of him. "She's only been gone a week Finn."

Finn glared at his brother's giggling and sat up, staring at the diva. "What do you want?"

"Carole's family dinner? We need to leave in ten minutes, I assumed you needed something to wear." Kurt grinned, placing a grey shirt down on Finn's bed. "Wear that and a pair of dark wash jeans, ten minutes Finn."

"Got it Kurt, thanks." Finn ushered his brother out the door before changing into the described outfit. Just as he finished rolling up his sleeves, his phone began to ring. Looking at the screen, he grinned when he saw it was Rachel and answered almost immediately.

"Hi baby." He grinned, sitting down on his bed again.

"Hi Finn, I miss you!" She replied and Finn could practically hear her smile down the phone.

"I miss you too baby. How's camp?" He asked, he laid back on his back. He just wanted to hear her voice, he'd missed her babbling.

"Oh Finn! It's so incredible! I love the fact that we're doing Wicked! Nessa's role is minor but I feel that I'm portraying her with the emotional depth that the character needs. After all, she's a young girl in a wheelchair and despite having everything she's ever wanted and being incredibly beautiful, she still faces a lot of challenges. Maybe I could call Artie and ask him for tips? No, that would be insensitive. You can tell your mother that my ankle's getting better by the way but I still can't walk on it. How's Lima?" She rambled on and Finn smiled; her voice was always so full of life and happy.

"Same old, same old. But I'm glad you're having fun, baby. I'll let Mom know. You're not in too much pain are you? Because Mom said that you need to stop if it hurts." He said, concerned. He'd hoped that after she'd hurt her ankle that she'd stay in Lima instead of going to camp, he was worried she'd hurt herself even more.

"I'm sat in a wheelchair nearly all the time Finn, I'm fine." Rachel giggled down the phone and he had to smile, her giggle was so cute.

"Just, please be careful, for me?"

"I will be Finn. So, what are you up to?" She asked, happy that he was concerned.

"Well, I'm about to head out actually. That family dinner I told you about?" He sighed. He really didn't want to go. His relatives would be asking him about his plans for college and the future and asking all about Rachel. He just wanted her to be there with him.

"I remember, although is it your relatives or Kurt's? I don't think you said that." He was happy that she actually cared about stuff like that.

"It's mine. They're kind of a bore apart from Uncle Zach, he's an absolute riot, when my Aunt Anna isn't looking that is." He smiled as he thought about his eccentric uncle. "Last time we met up, he tried to moony the server."

"He certainly sounds interesting." She giggled slightly and Finn grinned.

"He is. I wish you were coming though." He heard her sigh and instantly regretted saying it. "I'm sorry baby, I know you're having fun and all but I just miss you like crazy."

"It's not that Finn, I miss you too, so much. There's something I have to tell you." He could tell she was nervous which automatically made him nervous. His girlfriend was freaking Rachel Berry, she didn't get nervous about anything.

"What is it baby?" He asked, his voice filled with caution. He knew that she needed to talk but he also didn't want her to. He was scared about what she was going to say.

"Jesse's here." Finn stilled. He couldn't believe what he'd just heard. What the hell was Jesse St. Douchebag doing at his girlfriend's summer camp? "Finn? I can hear you breathing, I know you're there." He heard her sigh. "I knew you'd react like this, you're utterly predictable. In the best way possible, of course. Listen baby, just because he's here doesn't mean anything is going to happen. He's made a couple of comments about our kiss at Nationals but that is it. Oh, and a couple of rather rude comments regarding my broken ankle which I quickly called him out on. I may have also slapped him across the face."

That broke Finn out of his haze and he laughed, imagining the scene. "That's my girl."

"You- you're not mad?" Her voice was slightly quieter as she stuttered slightly.

"No, I'm not. I trust you baby, completely. I know that we love each other and you would never do anything like that with Jesse." He smiled, knowing his girlfriend's feelings regarding the boy.

"Finn, I would never do anything like that with anyone. I know this is still kind of a sore spot but I promise that I will never cheat on you, not with Jesse, not with anyone." Finn had to smile at how thoughtful she was being. He knew that Puck last year was a mistake she made because she was hurt about finding out about him and Santana.

"I know, baby. I love you so much and I promise you that I will never cheat on you either." He smiled and decided to make her laugh a little. "I also promise that when you're 25, and have won a bunch of Tony's and are ready to have intercourse and babies, that those babies will be raised in the Jewish faith."

It had the desired effect, he could hear her laughing and gasping for breath on the other end of the line. Finn knew Rachel well and he knew her different laughs. She chuckled slightly when Mr Schue had said something that she didn't particularly find funny but felt like she had to laugh out of respect. Then she giggled when she found something funny but was in public, Finn found this really cute and it always made him smile. She also giggled when he tickled her, especially in the stomach. But perhaps his favourite laugh was one that only those closest to her heard, this was when she let all her inhibitions go and just relaxed. She made she pretty funny sounds but they were all cute and this made Finn grin like the cat who caught the canary.

"I said that, didn't I? My goodness, I think to think I've loosened up slightly over these past few months." She giggled and Finn grinned, knowing that she was telling the truth.

"You're all sorts of awesome baby." He grinned and he heard her giggle again.

"Finn! I told you 10 minutes!" Kurt stormed into his room.

"Dude! I could've been changing!" Finn said, glaring at his brother who wasn't listening and was staring at Finn's phone which was held to his ear.

"Are you talking to Rachel?" He asked, an excited smile on his face.

"Yeah…" He spoke slowly and before he knew it, his brother had grabbed his phone out of his hand. He started rambling to Rachel about the goings on of Lima and asking her about every single detail of her trip.

Finn rolled his eyes and left the room, walking down the stairs to see his mother and stepdad putting their shoes on by the door.

"Where did Kurt go? I sent him to get you!" Carole exclaimed, looking at her son.

"He saw I was on the phone to Rachel. Next thing I knew, my phone was no longer in my hand." He sighed and pulled on his shoes.

"Oh for heaven's sake, I love that girl but she isn't half distracting." Carole sighed and Finn had to smile.

"KURT! Get your butt down here and out this door! You can talk to Rachel later!" Burt yelled up the stairs and Finn's bedroom door flew open.

"Okay. Yeah, I'll call you when I get back. I love you too and I'll tell him. Okay, bye Elle." Kurt's voice carried as he headed down the stairs. He reached the bottom and threw Finn's phone at him. "She says she loves you."

Finn smiled. That was something he already knew.


	9. We All Need a Mother

Finn sighed as he kicked Puck's ass on Call of Duty once again.

Rachel had gotten back from camp late the previous night and he'd wanted to see her the next day but she told him she had plans. Plans with his brother.

"_But baby, I haven't seen you in like two weeks!" He'd complained the night before._

"_And I haven't properly seen Kurt in about four weeks Finn!" She'd retorted._

"_Will you at least come and say hello?" He'd pouted but then stopped, knowing that she couldn't see him._

"_Of course baby, I miss you so much."_

"_I miss you too, my beautiful star."_

He sighed as he thought about their conversation the previous night. He just wanted to see his girlfriend, was that really too much to ask?

There was a knock on the door and he heard Kurt's loud footsteps as he rushed to open it. Finn swung his own bedroom door open in an attempt to hear their conversation.

It started with a lot of squealing and what Finn assumed was them hugging one another.

"Oh my goodness! You look good, Miss Berry!" His brother exclaimed and he heard Rachel giggle.

"Of course that's the first thing you say Kurt." She laughed and Finn heard the front door swing shut.

There was a moment of silence and Finn sat down on his bed.

"Oh for heaven's sake Elle! Ten minutes and then I expect you down here for a Vampire Diaries marathon. You are way too good at puppy eyes." His brother's voice drifted into his room and Finn grinned. The last part was definitely true, that girl had insane badgering skills in the form of cuteness.

Finn heard her crutches clicking on the wooden stairs and he grinned when she appeared in his doorway, her own kilo-watt smile on her face. She looked like an angel in her knee length white dress and holding herself up on her crutches.

"Hi!" She grinned as she entered the room, quickly plopping herself down on his lap and letting her crutches drop to the floor. He grinned and pulled her close, burying his nose in her neck and just breathing in the scent of her.

"God, you're beautiful, I missed you so much." He mumbled, holding her tight to him.

"I missed you too, I love you." She grinned, her fingers running through his hair and her lips kissing up his neck. She nibbled on his ear and he quickly lifted his head, crashing his lips onto hers.

As they pulled apart, eyes gazing into each other, Finn's hand reached out to tuck a strand of long brown hair behind her ear. "I love you so much." He commented, his hand running through the long locks on top of her head. She grinned and sighed contently, leaning her head back into his hand. "How's your ankle?"

"Good, it doesn't hurt that much when I try to walk anymore although the doctor said I shouldn't be doing that just yet." She sighed, leaning her head on his shoulder.

"That's good. Come on, I'll carry you down the stairs." He smiled and gazed at her, taking in her beautiful face. Lifting her into his arms, he realized how light she was. "Babe, you need to eat more."

"I eat more than enough Finn." She giggled and wrapped her arms around his neck as he carried her down the stairs. Kurt was in the living room so he carried her in there and plopped her down on the couch next to his brother.

"One best friend." He smiled, ruffling Kurt's hair resulting in a glare.

"How many times have I told you not to do that Finn?! Do you even know how long it takes to perfect this every morning?!" He exclaimed, his hands flying to his hair in an attempt to right it.

"Whatever little brother. Let me know when you need your crutches, baby." He grinned and kissed Rachel quickly before leaving the room, knowing that Kurt would kick him out of he tried to stay.

A few hours later, he wandered back down to grab a drink. He peeked through the glass door to the living room to see Kurt and Rachel munching popcorn, their eyes concentrated on the TV screen. He chuckled slightly and continued into the kitchen, pulling a Kool-Aid out.

"You good to stay over tonight?" His brother's voice drifted into the kitchen and Finn perked up.

"Of course, although I don't have anything with me." Rachel's angelic voice sounded. Finn tried not to smile at the tone of her voice; she made it sound like it was a huge problem.

"You left some of your stuff here the last time you slept round. For my inspection? I forgot to give it back. You can just borrow something of mine to sleep in." Again, Finn had to stop himself from laughing. Only Kurt would inspect his girlfriend's clothes.

"Oh, invite Mercedes! I haven't seen her in ages!" Her voice sounded so excited and Finn found himself grinning again.

"Oh good idea! We may need to go to the shops though, I don't think I have sufficient sleepover supplies." Again the worry in his brother's voice made Finn chuckle. These two could have their own TV show.

"Let's go then. Hang on, I need my crutches."

"FINN!" His brother's voice attacked his ears at its high pitch and loud volume. He headed to the living room and saw Kurt smirking while Rachel sent him an apologetic look. "Can Rachel have her crutches?"

"Please?" The brunette added, rolling her eyes at the relationship between her best friend and boyfriend.

"Course, hang on, I'll just go grab them." He sent a wink to Rachel before running up and down the stairs. When he returned, he held the metal sticks out to his girlfriend who smiled at him and took them. He turned around to head out the room when Kurt spoke again.

"Finn, we're heading to the shops and then Rachel and Mercedes are going to stay round." Kurt stated, looking at his brother expectantly.

"And you're telling me because…" Finn trailed off, winking at his girlfriend when she giggled.

"Well, I can't lift Rachel into my car and with her ankle she can't get in and out by herself." The diva explained, his tone indicating that this should have been obvious.

"Oh alright, hang on. You guys want your shoes?" He said, walking towards the shoe rack by the door. He pulled on his converse and picked up Rachel's little white ballet flat.

"The black ones please Finn." His brother called and Finn looked down at the shoe rack.

"Which black ones? There's like eight black pairs!" He exclaimed, his eyebrows furrowing at the amount of shoes in front of him.

"Ugh! I'll get them myself!" The diva exclaimed, appearing in the hallway.

"Whatever dude." Finn laughed and walked back into the living room to see Rachel giggling at their exchange. He held up her shoe with a smirk and knelt down in front of her, slipping it onto her foot. She giggled again and he smiled, reaching up to tuck her hair behind her ear.

"Alright Cinderella, Prince Charming, let's go." Kurt's voice came from the doorway and they turned to see him smirking at them.

They picked Mercedes up on the way to Walmart and Finn was glad he'd volunteered to drive as the three divas gossiped away. He pulled into a space as close to the front of the store as possible.

Rachel decided she'd stay in the car rather than a whole lot of hassle transferring her and her crutches.

"I'll stay with you." Finn smiled, slyly winking at his girlfriend who smirked.

"You two better not be making out when we get back!" Mercedes threatened jokingly as she and Kurt climbed out of the backseat.

"Ugh! Don't put ideas in their heads 'Cedes! It's my car!" Kurt complained as the two headed for the store. Finn and Rachel looked at each other and burst out laughing.

"Are we really that bad?" She asked, smiling at him from the passenger seat.

"Baby, I think we're worse." He grinned and she giggled, her hand reaching out to turn up the radio.

"Oh! I love this song!" Some Jason Derulo song was now blasting out the speakers of Kurt's car and Finn laughed as Rachel sang along, dancing in her seat as much as she could. When the next song came on and he knew the words, he joined in and it turned into an in car dance party.

"Oh dear God, this is worse than them making out!" Kurt exclaimed as he and Mercedes climbed back into the car, their arms filled with bags. He reached in between the two in the front to switch the radio station.

Lady Gaga was now playing and Finn chuckled as the three were singing at the top of their lungs. He rolled the windows down and pulled out of the parking lot, headed back to his house.

It was a few hours later when his mom arrived home, her arms full of shopping which Finn rushed to help carry. Walking past the living room, she grinned to see her step-son and his friends.

"Hi Rachel, Hi Mercedes." She smiled warmly at them. Finn took the last bag of groceries from her and she thanked him before stepping inside the living room. She sat down on the sofa next to Rachel and enveloped the girl in a hug, kissing the top of her head. "How was camp?"

"Amazing, it was really fun to just sing for two whole weeks. I missed all of you though." Rachel smiled, taking Carole's hands.

"We missed you too. Finn moped for the entire two weeks and even Burt was complaining that he, and I quote, 'missed your pretty face'." She winked at the girl and they both laughed. "How's your ankle?"

"Better, although I still have to wear this thing for another two weeks and then I get a boot." She explained, lifting the leg encased in the cast in the air with a sigh.

"Well at least we know you won't be standing on any more stalls too quickly. You girls staying the night?" She asked, standing up and looking at Mercedes with a smile.

"If that's all right with you Mrs Hummel." Mercedes smiled sweetly at Kurt's step-mother.

"Of course it is, I better get started on dinner then. A lot of mouths to feed." She winked and turned around, almost walking straight into Finn. "And this one eats for five!" She smirked, passing her son.

"Way to get in there on the parent front Ray." Mercedes laughed, scooting closer to Rachel who smiled. Finn settled on the arm of the sofa next to her, wrapping his arm around her. "Seriously though, you guys are close."

"Yeah, Carole's great." Rachel smiled, resting a hand on Finn's thigh. "She's been amazing when my dads have been away. I think I've spent more of the summer here than I have at home!"

"I wish Sam's parents liked me that much!" Mercedes laughed, smirking at Kurt who rolled his eyes. "They think I'm corrupting him!"

"Elle's just good with parents. Mrs Puckerman's practically in love with her." Kurt teased, having heard from Finn about their visit to Puck's house. He was also trying to distract Mercedes, he knew what Carole and Rachel's bond meant to the both of them.

"I've known Debbie forever!" Rachel defended but she laughed along with her friends.

"That just kind of proves the point Rach." Finn grinned, dropping a kiss to the top of her head. She huffed at him, turning away but Finn knew she was trying not to laugh. He ran his hand down her side and wiggled his fingers slightly. She burst into giggles and turned to glare at him.

"Oh Lord above! Finn! Out, now!" Kurt shouted, shooing the taller boy out of the room, much to the amusement of the girls. He chuckled and headed into the kitchen where his mom was chopping up vegetables.

"They kick you out? What did you do?" She asked with a smile on her face.

"Kurt did, I was tickling Rach." He chuckled and took a seat at the island. Carole laughed slightly and grabbed a bell pepper from her pile.

"What have you been up to today?" She smiled, her knife scoring through the vegetable.

"Call of Duty and Kurt insisted I tag along when they went to Walmart. It was fun though, turned into a dance party." He smiled and jumped slightly when his phone went off in his pocket. Pulling it out, he saw he had a text from Rachel.

_Sorry baby, Kurt's currently lecturing me about proper sleepover etiquette… x_

He laughed and his mom looked up confused before seeing his phone. "That sounds like fun." She said, continuing their conversation.

"Yeah it was." He grinned before replying to Rachel.

_Don't worry baby, wasn't your fault. Have fun with that ;) x_

"So what are you making?" He questioned, looking at the mountain of vegetables.

"Veggie chilli, easier than cooking something different for everyone." She smiled and began to load it all into a large pan.

"Sounds great Mom." He kissed her cheek and headed back up the stairs, seeing if Puck was up for another game. He continued to text Rachel until she stopped texting back. He was hallway through a game when her voice drifted into his room. She was singing, but she's wasn't just singing some Lady Gaga crap, no. That was her song, Get It Right. Why was she singing that?

He signed off and headed down the stairs, letting her beautiful voice wash over him.

"_What can you do when your good isn't good enough  
And all that you touch tumbles down?  
Cause my best intentions  
Keep making a mess of things,  
I just wanna fix it somehow  
But how many times will it take?  
Oh, how many times will it take for me to get it right, to get it right?"_

Standing in the doorway, he caught her eye and winked. She and Mercedes were stood on the small stage area Kurt had insisted his dad built. They were behind a microphone and Mercedes' arm was looped around Rachel's waist, keeping her in place as she stood, her casted leg off the floor.

_"Can I start again, with my faith shaken?  
Cause I can't go back and undo this  
I just have to stay and face my mistakes,  
But if I get stronger and wiser, I'll get through this"_

Mercedes joined in on the backing vocals and Finn glanced around the room. His mom and Kurt were sat on the sofa. His mom had tears running down her face and she was holding Kurt's hand tightly, staring with an expression of wonder at the girls on the stage.

_"What can you do when your good isn't good enough?  
And all that you touch tumbles down?  
Cause my best intentions keep making a mess of things,  
I just wanna fix it somehow  
But how many times will it take?  
Oh, how many times will it take for me to get it right?"_

He smiled at her, leaning against the doorframe. He just listened to her. Her voice was so beautiful. She was so beautiful. He loved her so much.

_"So I throw up my fist, throw a punch in the air,  
And accept the truth that sometimes life isn't fair!  
Yeah, I'll send out a wish, yeah, I'll send up a prayer  
And finally someone will see how much I care"_

She hit the high note and Kurt gave a little clap which made Carole chuckle. Finn watched his mother as she grinned so proudly at his girlfriend. He loved how they were so close. Rachel loved his mom, she was always baking cookies and brownies for her and she hugged her tightly every time she saw her.

"_What can you do when your good isn't good enough?  
And all that you touch tumbles down?  
Cause my best intentions keep making a mess of things,  
I just wanna fix it somehow  
But how many times will it take?  
Oh, how many times will it take, to get it right?  
To get it right?"_

He remembered what a crappy time this had been for her. She was still getting tormented at school; slushies to the face nearly every day and constant verbal abuse in the hallways, sometimes from the people she considered friends. He was treating her horribly too. Forgiving Quinn when what she had done was ten times worse than Rachel. He was so angry with himself.

When they finished, they both jokingly curtsied whilst laughing. Mercedes jumped down but then stopped and turned back. "Oh sorry Rae, hang on."

She moved to jumped back onto the 'stage' but Finn decided to walk in at that point. "I've got her Mercedes." He grinned and the other girl shrugged, collapsing on the sofa next to Kurt. Finn smiled at his girlfriend and swept her into his arms, carrying her bridal style. The sofa was full so he settled on the armchair and set her on his lap.

"That was so beautiful Rachel." Carole grinned at the girl, wiping her eyes off.

"I've always wondered where that came from. Like I know what it's about but where did it come from? Why were you doubting?" Kurt asked, looking at his best friend.

"It was Quinn." Rachel said quietly, fiddling with her nails.

"Say what?" Mercedes asked, sitting up and staring at the petite brunette.

"When we were supposedly writing the song, I asked her if she and Finn were back together. She went off on some rant about how she was going to be some successful real estate agent and Finn was going to take over Burt's tire shop. She said that I live in some schoolgirl fantasy and if I keep looking for a fairytale ending, I'm never going to get it right." Her head was downcast as she spoke and she continued to fiddle with her nails. Finn and Kurt shared a worried glance over her head and Carole was seething.

"That little bitch!" The mother exclaimed and all of the teenagers' head snapped to her. She went bright red and gave them all an apologetic look.

"Mrs Hummel!" Mercedes smiled, nudging the woman to let her know that they didn't mind.

"Sorry, it's just, that girl aggravates me so much. Ever since I first met her, she's gotten under my skin. She appears all sickly-sweet and oh so charming but underneath that façade, she's just some scared little girl who can't help but dig her manicured nails into everything. She used to make all these little comments about Finn under her breath, whenever he messed up in the slightest and she was never supportive. That whole little fantasy she has in her head? That just proves that she wanted to drag Finn down. And who is she to be deciding who Burt is giving his shop to? It seems like she's the one living in a schoolgirl fantasy." The mother ranted, gazing round the room at the teenagers who sat there with their mouths open in amazement.

All of a sudden, Rachel shuddered in Finn's arms and turned into his chest. Finn held her tightly, rubbing her back as the tears fell. Her body shook with sobs and Finn's t-shirt was getting soaked. Carole caught his eye and gestured for him to bring her over. He did as he was told and went to place his girlfriend in the small gap between his mom and brother. As he went to do so, Carole caught his arm and shook her head, gesturing for him to place the girl on her lap. Kurt and Mercedes vacated the sofa and pulled Finn into the kitchen, all of them sitting at the island. They could hear Carole whispering words of comfort to Rachel.

"Shh, honey, it's alright." Mercedes could see the older woman stroking Rachel's hair and the diva was crying into Carole's shoulder.

After a while, the crying lessened and Rachel wiped her eyes, moving off Carole's lap. "I'm sorry." She said, running her fingers through her hair.

"Honey, there is nothing to apologise for. That little blonde is just jealous. She's jealous that you're going somewhere and that she's going to end up staying in Lima her entire life. I'm suspecting that wasn't the only incident there's been from her?" The mother asked, holding the girl in a hug.

"No." The diva admitted, sighing. "She's been leading the campaign against me for years."

"Well sweetie, she's just jealous. Finn loves you, I can see that as well as anyone. He lights up any time he hears from you, let alone when he actually sees you. Whatever it was that he felt for Quinn, it wasn't love, no matter what they told each other. Alright? Now let's see that beautiful smile." She tapped the brunette on the nose and she instantly smiled, giggling slightly.

"Thank you Carole." She blushed and Carole grinned, hugging her again.

"No need to thank me, you know I've always wanted a daughter?" She grinned and helped her into the bathroom.

When they exited, Rachel's face was clean and she was smiling. Carole went to stir dinner and Rachel hobbled over to her friends, smiling sheepishly.

"Come here, diva." Mercedes grinned, opening her arms for Rachel who laughed and accepted the hug. They both shrieked when Kurt joined in from behind them and all three burst out laughing.

"Who's laughing in my house?" A booming voice sounded through to the kitchen and Burt soon appeared in the doorway to the kitchen. "Oh it's you lot, I suppose that's alright."

They all laughed as Burt kissed Carole in greeting and hugged Kurt and Finn. "Rachel and Mercedes are staying the night." Carole explained, gesturing to the two girls.

"Hey diva." Burt joked, smiling at Mercedes and hugging her. "Rachel! Did Carole tell you I've missed your pretty face?" He grinned, lifting her off the floor.

"She mentioned it." Rachel laughed, gripping Kurt when she was placed back on the floor. She grinned and looked at Finn who was gazing at her happily. Yes, she'd spent more of her summer here than at home, but it was a pretty great place to be.


	10. Disney and Pointe Shoes

Finn and Rachel were lazing around on the hammock on Rachel's porch, just relishing in the sun and the thrill of summer.

"This is nice." Rachel smiled as Finn slowly rocked them back and forth with his foot.

"Yeah, it is." He grinned, kissing her hair lazily. She was sat in between his legs, her long hair dominating his chest and her legs were stretched out in front of her.

She closed her eyes and sighed, letting the feeling take her over. This was what she wanted, Finn was all she needed in that moment. They both groaned when her phone rang loudly.

"Hello?" She answered, pushing Finn's hand away as he slid it up her leg. She glared at him and he laughed, placing his hands on her waist. "Oh hi Mr. Schue. Yes, Finn is with me."

Finn's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, it was summer. What could Mr. Schue want? He watched as Rachel nodded as she listened with a slightly disappointed look on her face.

"Yes, of course we'll be there." She stated and looked at Finn, a smile on her face. She raised an eyebrow as her caller said something. "I haven't heard from her, perhaps you should ask Santana or Brittany?"

She mouthed the word "Quinn" at him and Finn clicked. No one had seen or heard from Quinn in a few weeks, Rachel hadn't seen her since their shopping trip with the other Glee girls. She'd been invited to the 4th of July bash they'd thrown but she hadn't shown up; Santana said something about her being away with her mom.

"Okay Mr. Schue, we'll see you soon. Goodbye." She hung up and sighed, standing up off the hammock. Finn pouted at the loss of her and she smiled, holding out her hand. "We have to go to school."

"Why? Rach, it's summer." Finn pouted, standing up and taking her hand as they headed for his truck.

"There's this benefit thing going on to raise money for childhood cancer care and someone contacted him; they want us to perform." She said, trying to climb into his truck. He laughed slightly and lifted her in, quickly climbing in the driver's side.

"Okay, when is it?" He asked, backing out of her driveway.

"In two days and they want a whole set." She sighed, rolling her eyes. "It's ridiculous that Mr. Schue agreed, how are we going to get a whole set prepared?"

"Wait, so we're going to be at school for the next two days?" Finn groaned, he wanted to spend his summer with his girlfriend in the sun, not in a stuffy choir room.

"Unfortunately. Mr. Schue said he'd discuss everything once everyone arrived." She shrugged, taking his free hand as he headed for the school. She didn't live that far away from the school so they arrived rather quickly.

They both hopped out of the truck and headed towards the school. On the door was a sign that told them to go to the auditorium and they met Mike and Tina on the way there. Rachel hugged Tina tightly and the girls quickly started rambling about their summers as they walked in front of their boyfriends.

"Good summer so far?" Mike asked, laughing at Tina's face as Rachel started talking a million miles a minute.

"Yeah, it's been amazing." He smiled, watching his girlfriend. "Baby, you're talking insanely fast again."

"Oh! I'm sorry Tina! I don't even notice that I do it sometimes!" Rachel giggled slightly and Tina assured her it was fine as they entered the auditorium. Everyone else was already there, sat in the chairs of the audience as Mr. Schue stood on stage.

The stage was decorated with random sets and props. A backdrop of the Disney castle covered the back of the stage and a glass slipper sat on the stage. There was a small carpet laid down and a genie lamp on top of it. Other small trinkets covered the stage, all relating to one movie or another.

"Ah, good, everyone's here." The teacher smiled, gesturing for the four to take a seat. "Welcome to Disney booty camp."

The Glee club shared a look of surprise, all slightly confused as to what was going on.

"Um Mr. Schue?" Puck asked, raising his hand. "Why are we having a Disney booty camp?"

"I explained to most of you on the phone that you've been requested to perform at a benefit concert to raise money to fight childhood cancer. The theme of the concert is 'Songs of My Childhood' and I thought that Disney fits that perfectly." He explained, gesturing to his surroundings. The club started talking, all excited about the project.

"So have you assigned songs already?" Santana asked, a genuine smile on her face for once.

"I have, I thought it would be easier that way. Okay so, first up, we're starting with a big impact number, Belle from Beauty and the Beast." Everyone started whispering again, excited about the assignment.

"Who's who?" Tina asked, excitedly tugging on Rachel's arm.

"Santana, Brittany and Tina, you're going to play Gaston's admirers." The girls all smiled at each other. "Sam and Mercedes, you're going to be the baker and his wife." The couple smiled at each other, their hands entwining. "Rachel, you'll play Belle and Kurt will be the bookshop owner." The diva smiled, high fiving Kurt when he offered his hand. "Artie, you'll be LeFou and Puck, you'll be Gaston. The rest of you will be playing the other villagers."

Finn sighed as he realized that Puck would be singing to Rachel. She leaned over to whisper in his ear. "Don't worry, I have to be disgusted by him." He grinned and kissed her cheek, making her smile.

"Okay, then next, Puck and Rachel will perform 'Me' from the stage version of the show." Mr. Schue explained and the kids all laughed, that was going to be funny. "Then the boys and Tina are going to sing I'll Make a Man Out of You from Mulan. Puck, you won't be in this one."

The boys all smiled and Mike hugged Tina tight as she smiled brightly.

"Then girls you're going to take it away with I Won't Say I'm in Love from Hercules and Santana is going to play Meg." The Latina grinned, hugging Brittany when the girl offered. "Rachel and Mercedes are going to duet on I'll Try from Peter Pan 2. Then we'll finish with A Night to Remember from High School Musical 3."

They all groaned at the last selection, looking at each other. "The song is fun. If we have to do one from that terror of a franchise, I'd chose that one." Mercedes concluded and they all nodded, agreeing with her.

"Okay guys, let's get to work." They all jumped up and headed for the stage, excited about the prospect of a performance.

They were all laughing and within the hour, they had an arrangement sorted out for Belle which was entertaining and looked visually pleasing.

"Okay, how about the boys start learning Make a Man and we'll go to the choir room and help Puck and Rachel with Me?" Mercedes suggested, wanting to work on the duet.

"Sure, sounds like a good idea." Mr. Schue smiled and the group quickly said their goodbyes.

"I'll see you in a little while." Rachel smiled, looking up at Finn but he was holding eye contact with Puck and they seemed to be conveying a message. "Finn?"

"Sorry baby, see you in a minute." He grinned and kissed her quickly, lingering slightly longer than was appropriate in public.

"Let's go Diva!" Mercedes called out and Artie wolf-whistled. "Detach yourself from white boy."

Rachel laughed and stepped away, waving sweetly as she left the auditorium with the girls and Puck.

"Hey Princess." Puck smiled, hugging the girl when they reached the choir room. "Sarah's been banging on about you again."

"Really? I should come over soon, I miss her and your mother." She smiled, as the other girls were whispering.

"You don't miss me?" He pouted, pretending to be upset about her statement.

"Needy isn't a good look on you Noah." She laughed, patting him on the arm in mock sympathy before skipping off to the other girls with a laugh.

They joined back together after around an hour to see how they'd been getting on. Rachel and Puck went first, setting up a small area of the stage to be Belle's 'house' and a few chairs to represent a well.

Puck strolled onto the stage and went to knock on the door. "Oh Belle! Belle!"

Rachel sneaked onto the stage, saw Puck and turned away. She let out a sigh as he spotted her and dragged her over.

"I have a question for you." He smiled and tugged her into his side. Everyone laughed at the look of disgust on her face.

"_You've been dreaming, just one dream  
Nearly all your life  
Hoping, scheming, just one theme:  
Will you be a wife?  
Will you be some he-man's property?  
Good news! That he-man's me!"_

Puck sang and dragged Rachel across the stage with him, a wide smile on his face as she reacted to the things he was singing. As he stopped, Rachel tried to run but he caught her under his arm in a headlock position.

"_This equation, girl plus man  
Doesn't help just you  
On occasion, women can  
Have their uses too  
Mainly to extend the family tree  
Pumpkin, extend with me!"_

He walked back the other way, twirling her out of his arms as he sang. She tried to dodge him but he picked her up in a fireman's lift with her body bent over his shoulder.

"_We'll be raising sons galore!" _He sang walking towards the back of the stage and turning around.

"_Inconceivable!" _Rachel exclaimed, moving her legs in an attempt to escape. She did so but he caught her once more, lifting her bridal style.

"_Each built six foot four!" _He lifted her high above his head and she sighed, resting her head in her palm.

"_Unbelievable!" _She sighed as he threw her up and let go, catching her back in the bridal position.

"_Each stuffed with every Gaston gene!" _He sighed and let go, her tumbling out of his arms.

"_I'm not hearing this!" _Rachel deadpanned as she sat up, her legs over the front of the stage.

"_You'll be keeping house with pride!" _Puck pretended to dust behind her and she watched with an incredulous look on her face.

"_Just incredible!" _She sighed, looking at him in disgust.

"_Oh so gratified…" _He picked her up off the front of the stage and lifted her so she was sat on one of his shoulders.

"_So unweddable!" _She interjected, looking around as in disbelief.

"_That you are part of this idyllic scene!" _He sat on the 'well' and perched her on one of her legs, looking at her as he spoke. "Picture this: A rustic hunting lodge, my latest kill roasting over the fire, my little wife massaging my feet, while the little ones play on the floor with the dogs. We'll have six or seven!"

Rachel looked at him her eyes wide and stood with him quickly following. "Dogs?" She asked innocently, looking up at him.

"No Belle! Strapping boys, like me!" He grinned and sat her back down on the well, turning to face her on one knee.

"Imagine that." She deadpanned, looking off into the distance with disgust as Puck began to sing again.

"_I can see that we will share  
All that love implies  
We shall be a perfect pair  
Rather like my thighs  
You are face to face with destiny!  
All roads lead to...  
The best things in life are...  
All's well that ends with me!  
Escape me? There's no way  
Certain as 'Do, Re'…" _

The audience laughed as he sang, at the words and the facial expressions Rachel was pulling as she attempted to scoot away from him, only to be pulled back rather sharply.

"_Belle when you marry…" _He stood and tugged her forcefully into his arms, looking into her eyes as she tried to do anything but reciprocate the eye contact. "So Belle, what would it be? Is it 'yes', or is it 'oh, yes'?"

She finally managed to break free and run to the 'house'. "I- I just don't deserve you!" She exclaimed, looking back at him.

"Who does?" He shrugged, flexing his muscles. "_Me!" _

Rachel ran off the stage as he hit the last note and everyone erupted into applause.

"Guys that was amazing, I can't believe you've only been working on that for an hour!" Mr. Schue smiled, approaching the two who were now laughing with each other.

"Yeah, well, Rachel's really light so it's easy to like throw her around and stuff." Puck smirked, patting Rachel on the head and laughing when she glared at him. She skipped down to steps and towards Finn who caught her as she landed in his lap.

"That was awesome baby, you were so funny!" He laughed, hugging her tightly.

"Thank you Finn." She kissed him quickly, being sure to keep it short and sweet.

"Boys? Tina? Shall we show them what we've got?" Finn smirked, lifting Rachel off his lap and placing her on his chair as the other group made their way up to the stage.

They stood in a line at the front of the stage. Finn and Sam stood at either end, staring at the four in-between them.

"_Let's get down to business  
To defeat the Huns.  
Did they send me daughters  
When I asked for sons?"_

Finn sang first, walking behind them and staring over them intimidatingly. He stopped behind Tina and scoffed as he finished his verse, crossing his arms.

"_You're the saddest bunch I ever met  
But you can bet before we're through  
Mister, I'll make a man  
Out of you."_

Sam sang and walked in front of the line, standing in Finn's original position. He flicked Tina's ear, picked at Artie's hair, tapped Kurt's shoulder and pushed Mike's chest on his way.

"_Tranquil as a forest  
But on fire within.  
Once you find your center  
You are sure to win.  
You're a spineless, pale pathetic lot  
And you haven't got a clue.  
Somehow I'll make a man  
Out of you."_

The girls burst out laughing as the group on stage started to do push-ups and try to appear 'manly'. Kurt was stretching as if he were about to start an insanely difficult dance number whilst Mike was doing one armed pushups. Artie had some fake weights and was lifting them whilst Tina was looking nervously at the boys and trying to replicate their moves as Finn and Sam sang.

"_I'm never gonna catch my breath." _Kurt heaved, looking nervous as Finn approached.

"_Say goodbye to those who knew me." _Mike collapsed on the floor out of his push-ups, rolling over as Sam approached.

"_Boy was I fool in school for cutting gym." _Artie exclaimed, wheeling away hopelessly as Finn left Kurt and headed for him.

"_This guy's got 'em scared to death. Hope he doesn't see right through me." _Tina sang, pushing her long hair in an attempt to look manlier as Sam walked past.

"_Now I really wish that I knew how to swim!" _Artie exclaimed as they all pretended they were walking over some poles.

The rest of the song continued in pretty much the same way and the other group were in stiches by the time they finished.

"That was awesome!" Puck laughed, high fiving his friends as they made their way back to the seats.

"So the performance is in two days." Mr. Schue stated, resuming his earlier position on the stage. "I was thinking that perhaps you could all stay here tonight to ensure we get as much rehearsal as possible? Girls can take the stage and boys can take the choir room? I've already called all of your parents and they've agreed as long as you stay separate."

He sent a look to Rachel and Finn who blushed, knowing that her dads can unfortunately caught them a few times already that summer and had probably mentioned it to their teacher.

"We'd love to stay Mr. Schue." Rachel grinned in an attempt to diffuse the tension.

"But we don't have anything with us." Sam inputted and they all nodded, looking at their teacher.

"Okay, let's take an hour break now and you can all go and grab your things." The teacher decided with a nod.

"Um, Mr. Schue? Would it be alright if Rachel and I stayed? We'd like to get started on I'll Try." Mercedes raised her hand, receiving a nod from Rachel.

"Of course, can someone else grab your things?" He asked, looking at the group.

"I'll stop off at Mercedes' house." Kurt offered and smiled as Mercedes handed him her keys.

"I can stop at Rach's." Finn smiled and Rachel beamed at him.

"Okay, off you go then." Mr. Schue smiled.

"Finn? Don't you need my keys?" Rachel asked as her boyfriend began to wander off.

"Oh, didn't your dads tell you?" He looked confused, his eyebrows furrowing. "They gave me a spare last week."

"They did?" She asked, looking surprised.

"Yeah, while you were at ballet." He explained, digging the keys out of his pocket and holding them up.

"Oh, okay then." She smiled and leant up to kiss him.

"Finn? Can you grab Rachel's dance bag? I have an idea." Mercedes grinned, coming up as the couple separated. Rachel looked at her confused but shook her head, her friend would explain later.

"It's in my truck, I can grab it now if you want?" He asked, looking at Rachel with a smile.

"That'd be great, thanks Finn." Mercedes smiled. Finn kissed Rachel's hair and ran out to his truck, grabbing the pink Pineapple bag.

When he returned to the auditorium, Rachel and Mercedes were sat on the edge of the stage talking. Mr. Schue seemed to have disappeared and they were the only ones in there. Both heads popped up as he entered.

"Here you are." He smiled and handed her the bag. "Gonna tell me what it's for?"

"Nope." Rachel grinned, popping the p. "Thanks baby."

"You're welcome." He smiled and pulled her in for a kiss.

"Ugh, there's another person here." Mercedes joked, tugging on Rachel's arm.

"I'll see you later." Finn smiled, pecking her lips once more before he left.

As he left the auditorium, he heard Mercedes' voice. "You've got it bad, white girl. Now, go change."

An hour later, he pulled back into the school parking lot and climbed out, his grey duffel bag and Rachel's pink one slung over his shoulder. In his arms he carried his sleeping bag and a bag stuffed with Rachel's bedding, knowing she hated her sleeping bag. He realized he was the last to arrive when he saw everyone stood outside the auditorium looking annoyed.

"What's going on?" He asked, noticing the looks on their faces.

"Your girlfriends have decided to lock us out!" Santana exclaimed, looking at Sam and Finn who held their hands up in a surrender position.

"They said they only wanted us to see the final product." Tina smiled from where she stood leaning against the wall.

It was at this point that Mr. Schue walked out of the auditorium. "Rachel said you'd be here, come in. Apparently, it's ready." He laughed, holding the door open for them all to file in. They all took a seat near the front and looked at the stage.

Rachel was stood in the middle of the stage dressed in ballet tights and a black leotard, her pointe shoes on her feet. The only difference to how she normally dressed for dance was the fact that her long hair hung loose around her shoulders.

The music started and she began to move, extending her leg so that it was raised by her ear before she sharply spun, holding the leg up. She lowered it and ran to the front right hand corner of the stage. She opened her mouth and began to sing.

"_I am not a child now  
I can take care of myself  
I mustn't let them down now  
Mustn't let them see me cry  
I'm fine, I'm fine_

_I'm too tired to listen  
I'm too old to believe  
All these childish stories  
There is no such thing as faith  
And trust and pixie dust_

_I try  
But it's so hard to believe  
I try  
But I can't see what you see  
I try, I try, I try..."_

During this she stood still, gazing off into the distance with a look of wonder on her face. After she finished, she turned to the back of the stage and leaped, her legs forming a perfect split in the air. She twirled to the wings and when she came back, Mercedes walked onto the stage. The diva stood in the left front hand corner, starting to sing.

"_My whole world is changing  
I don't know where to turn  
I can't leave you waiting  
But I can't stay and watch this city burn  
Watch it burn_

_'Cause I try  
But it's so hard to believe  
I try  
But I can't see where you see  
I try, I try_

_I try and try to understand  
The distance in between  
The love I feel and the things I fear  
And every single dream"_

As her friend sang, Rachel twirled, leapt and danced her way around the stage, executing moves which had Finn grinning with pride.

As Mercedes finished, Rachel turned towards the corner she'd stood in and stepped onto pointe on her right foot, her left leg swinging behind her to touch her head. She then ran back to her corner, standing opposite Mercedes.

"_I can finally see it  
Now I have to believe  
All those precious stories  
All the world is made of...  
Faith, and trust... and pixie dust_

_So, I'll try  
Because I finally believe  
I'll try, cuz I can see what you see_

_I'll try, I'll try  
I'll try...  
To fly."_

Those sat in the audience burst into applause and the two girls started laughing, Rachel running to hug Mercedes. The other diva gladly accepted, holding her friend close.

"That was so amazing girls!" Mr. Schue exclaimed, climbing onto the stage. "You know, I always forget that you dance Rachel."

Rachel chuckled and looked down at her ensemble. "I'm going to go change because as fun as that was, wearing and dancing in pointe shoes for an hour is painful." She laughed and headed backstage into one of the changing rooms.

Finn noticed everyone was talking and he quickly slipped away without anyone noticing; quite a feat considering his height. He knocked lightly on the door to the dressing room and entered, chuckling slightly as Rachel squealed.

"Baby, you're still fully clothed." He laughed, watching her remove her shoes.

"You scared me!" She defended, placing the shoes in her dance bag. "So, what did you think?" She grinned, still excited from the performance.

"It was awesome baby, you were so good!" He grinned, tugging her into his arms. She laughed and stood on her toes to reach his lips.

Before either of them knew it, he had her backed up against the wall and her leg was hooked around his waist. One of his arms held her leg in place while the other held her waist, tugging her as close as he could. Her arms were gripped tightly around his neck, her hands running through the hair at the nape of his neck.

"S-so, you liked my singing?" She panted as he began kissing down her neck.

"Baby, the singing was amazing but I really enjoyed the fact that your leg can go up here." He smirked and continued his onslaught on her neck. He used the hand that was holding her leg to straighten her leg and lift it up so it was by her ear. She moaned loudly and he realized what the position was doing to her with a smirk. "You gotta be quiet baby."

"Ugh, Finn." She moaned out his name and Finn grinned, that was one of the best sounds in the world to him.

They were interrupted by a load knock on the door and Mike's voice coming from the other side. "Mr. Schue says you two have five minutes to be back on the stage."

They sighed and separated. Rachel quickly changed whilst Finn tried to think of anything to calm him down. When they were both ready, they headed out hand in hand to the stage.

"I apologise Mr. Schue, my zipper was stuck." She smiled brilliantly and the other Glee club members all snorted.

"Sure Rachel, does your dress even have a zipper?" Santana laughed, trying to see the back of her dress.

"Okay guys, let's separate and then tomorrow we'll work on the last number and polishing everything." Mr. Schue smiled, trying to ignore Rachel's messy hair and the lipstick on Finn's cheek.

They began to separate, everyone grabbing their things from the seats. Finn picked up Rachel's bag and brought them over with a smile. He handed Rachel over her pink duffel bag with a smile and she grinned back, opening as if to check that everything was in there. She pulled out her ratty stuffed elephant with tears in her eyes and she looked at Finn. "You remembered."

"Of course I remembered baby, you can't sleep without the damn thing." Finn grinned, kissing her forehead. He could see the girls behind her exchanging looks and holding their hands over their hearts; they were used to the stuffed toy at sleepovers and it was true, Rachel couldn't sleep without it.

"You still have that thing?" Puck asked, looking at Rachel who nodded with a smile. Finn knew that the animal had been a gift from her grandparents when she was very young and she used to take it everywhere, so he wasn't surprised that Puck knew what it was.

"Of course I do Noah." She said like it was obvious and she zipped her bag up, placing next to her things on the stage.

"Okay guys, now that Rachel has her stuffed animal, boys to the choir room." Mr. Schue stepped in, looking at them reproachfully.

"Mr. Schue! She is an elephant!" Tina exclaimed with a smile and the club laughed.

"Why are you making fun Tina? You have Lion with you right?" Mike grinned, winking at his girlfriend.

"We all have a stuffed animal idiot." Santana rolled her eyes and the girls all pulled out one animal or another. The boys laughed and said their goodnights, heading to the choir room.


	11. Girl Talk

The girls all settled down rather quickly, setting their bedding out around the stage.

Tina's blue polka dotted comforter and matching pillow with her stuffed lion lying on top started off the circle. Next to his was Rachel's pink flowery comforter and yellow blanket with her pillow and stuffed elephant on top. Mercedes was next to Rachel, her black and white comforter blending into the stage with her stuffed giraffe on top. Brittany and Santana's matching red comforters were next to each other with a stuffed dolphin and a stuffed cheetah respectively. The girls quickly changed into their pyjamas, all of them dressed in sleep shirts and shorts.

"Rachel! You're a really good dancer, you should dance more in Glee!" Brittany exclaimed, grinning at the diva.

"Even I can't deny that was all kinds of awesome Berry. Why don't you dance more in Glee?" Santana asked, watching the diva as she blushed.

"I'm classically trained, I'm not very good at the sorts of stuff that Brittany's really good at." She explained, pulling a hair bobble out of her back. She tugged her hair up into a messy bun and frowned as everyone started laughing. "What?"

"Now I'm definitely convinced your dress didn't have a zipper." Santana laughed as Tina touched the bruise forming on Rachel's neck. Everyone laughed as she gasped loudly, her hand flying to her neck.

"I'm going to kill him!" She muttered under her breath, sighing as her friends laughed even more.

"You're so not going to murder him." Mercedes laughed, pulling her own hair up.

"I guess not." Rachel laughed, flipping back on her comforter. Her phone went off in her bag and she reached for it, seeing that it was Finn.

_Gonna be difficult being so close to you x_

She smiled and texted him back, pulling her knees up to her chest.

_I'd tell you to meet me but you'll just mark me again ;) x_

She put her phone to the side and looked at the other glee girls who were staring back at her with amused faces. "Oh shut up!" She blushed and they all laughed.

"We didn't say anything." Tina replied, a smirk on her face. Rachel stuck her tongue out at her and the other girls laughed more.

"Seriously though, have you had my sloppy seconds yet?" Santana asked, the teasing tone in her voice letting Rachel know that she wasn't trying to be mean. The red blush that swept over Rachel's cheeks spoke all that they needed to know and everyone started wolf whistling.

"Am I seriously the only one of us who is still a virgin?" Mercedes asked, looking at the girls. Rachel was still red and Santana and Brittany shrugged.

"I still am." Tina said, no hint of embarrassment in her voice.

"Are you serious?" Brittany asked, looking surprised at Tina's revelation.

"Yes, although Mike and I have been talking about it a lot and I think I'm ready." She continued, still no embarrassment in her voice.

"Wanky." Santana laughed and Mercedes buried her head in her hands.

"Can we change the subject? Rachel, aren't you glad to have that boot off?" The diva asked, looking at her friend who was laughing at her embarrassment.

"So glad! It took ages and it felt like I'd lost my independence." Rachel sighed, massaging her ankle a little.

"All that pointe work wasn't too hard on it was it? You only got it off last week." Tina asked, looking at Rachel in concern.

"Yeah it's fine, I actually started pointe again the day I got it off. I was supposed to have the cast for a week longer than I did and the boot for an extra week as well! I'm glad I started walking on it before the doctor told me to else I'd have been stuck with Finn carrying me around for an extra two weeks!" She laughed, looking at her phone as it went off again.

_Oh! I'm sorry baby but you can't pretend you didn't like it ;) x_

She rolled her eyes and replied, glaring at Santana when she made some sarcastic comment.

_It's okay baby, I certainly did but you seemed to be enjoying yourself as well ;) x_

It took around two seconds for him to reply.

_Well it's not every day that you discover your girlfriend can lift her leg above her head ;) x_

She laughed and sighed when Santana took her phone. "Rachel Berry! Are you sexting?"

The others gasped and crowded around her phone, staring at the texts. "This isn't the first time!" Mercedes exclaimed, looking at Rachel in surprise. She blushed and snatched her phone back, stuffing it in her duffle quickly.

"So you're really all in this time around?" Tina smiled, all the girls returning to their own comforters.

"Yeah, it's been amazing and it feels like the time has just flown. I can remember when we weren't together of course but it just all seems so irrelevant." She smiled, climbing underneath the warmth. While it was still warm outside, the auditorium seemed to always been cold.

"I know how you feel." Mercedes smiled, taking her friend's hand.

"Ugh, are we gonna get all mushy?" Santana asked, rolling her eyes.

"But 'Tana, you said you liked mushy." Brittany said innocently and the other three raised their eyebrows, looking at each other.

"Britt, I said I liked being mushy with you." The girl replied in hushed tones but there was no one else speaking so the others all heard it.

"As Santana would say, wanky." Rachel laughed and the others joined in, tears running down their faces.

"Don't ever try and use my idioms again Berry." Santana said through her laughter and everyone agreed. While it was hilarious, it just didn't sound right coming out of Rachel Berry's mouth.

"ATTACK!"

The girls all screamed as the boys appeared from backstage. Finn picked up Rachel and Mike took Tina. Sam grabbed Mercedes, Kurt took Brittany and Puck picked up Santana. The girls were screaming as the boys carried them out the auditorium and down the corridor, pulling them into the cafeteria.

They'd laid out their blankets on the floor in a circle around a tower of pizza boxes. Artie was smiling, holding a few bottles of coke and plastic cups.

"We'd thought you'd like some food." Mike smiled, gesturing to the boxes.

"So, we called in." Puck grinned, flopping on his sleeping bag. They all sat down, the boys claiming their sleeping bags and the girls scattering themselves around. Finn tugged Rachel into his lap and Tina slid under Mike's arm. Brittany and Santana were linking pinkies while Mercedes and Sam snuggled together. "It's freaking couple central up in this joint."

"Damn straight." Artie rolled his eyes, grabbing a pizza box and opening it up.


	12. Work Days

"Rise and shine!"

The lights of the stage were turned on and the girls all groaned, rolling over in their sleep. The lights were blinding enough when you were fully awake.

"Come on!" It was Kurt's voice that was squealing at them as they all grumpily sat up.

"Ugh, what time is it?" Santana groaned, her head popping up with mussed hair.

"Half past six!" Kurt declared cheerfully and they all groaned, rolling back over in their beds.

"Even I don't get up that early, it's summer Kurt!" Rachel exclaimed, glaring at him as he walked over to her make shift bed.

"Yes but I've managed to get the boys up and after that, this should be a breeze." The diva grinned, sitting down in between Mercedes and Rachel's comforters.

"How on earth did you manage that?" Tina asked, stretching as she sat up.

"I told them all that you were in the cafeteria having a topless pillow fight." He grinned, flicking his nails with a smirk as the girls all laughed.

"Is there food? I'm only getting up this early if there's food." Santana moaned, cracking open one eye.

"There's pastries and other things in the cafeteria. I went to the bakery." Kurt explained, smiling as Rachel, the last one, sat up.

"Let's go! Before the boys eat them all!" Brittany grinned, jumping up and grabbing her Cheerios hoodie.

The girls all agreed, grabbing some sort of extra layer to keep them warm in the cold cafeteria. Rachel didn't have anything with her; it seemed that Finn had foregone that slight detail but she didn't mind too much. It wasn't that cold. They skipped jokingly down the hall to the cafeteria where the boys had pulled out a few of the tables and were munching on the food that Kurt had bought.

The boys did a double take as the girls entered; hair disheveled and faces makeup free. As they stared with open mouths, Finn, who was used to waking up next to his girlfriend, offered them all a seat and handed out paper plates.

"Sleep well?" He asked Rachel, handing her the box of vegan friendly pastries.

"Yes actually although the stage floor wasn't the most comforting for my back and it was rather cold." She complained, shivering slightly when she realized how cold it was in the cafeteria as well.

"You alright there baby?" Finn asked, noticing her movements. "Here, hang on." He slipped off his hoodie to reveal a long sleeved Henley shirt and he wrapped the layer around her, kissing her hair as he pulled away.

She gave him a dazzling smile and slid her arms into the sleeves, zipping it up when it was on her properly. It completely swamped her and Finn thought she looked adorable though when she stood up, he knew that it would look like she was _only _wearing his hoodie. That was still adorable but sexy as hell.

"You guys done gawking yet?" Mercedes asked, happily munching on a cinnamon roll. "Also, how come Finn hasn't suddenly become a fish?"

"I suppose it's because he's used to seeing me in this state." Rachel answered, picking up a pastry and biting into it.

"Wait, what?" The boys all suddenly snapped out of it and looked at Finn, eyebrows raised.

"You stayed the night?" Artie asked, looking at Finn in admiration. "How'd you swing that? Girl's got two dads. Two!"

"They're lawyers. Business trips and shit, although I'm sure they're not aware that Hudson's been staying over. As soon as she was old enough, they were very quick to stop her from sharing a house with me when they went away." Puck chuckled, remembering how Rachel used to spend her dads' business trips climbing trees in his backyard.

"Sneaking around? Never knew you were such a badass Berry." Santana smiled, raising her hand for a high five. Rachel was bright red but she complied, hitting her hand against the Latina's.

Luckily for Finn and Rachel, it was at this point that Mr. Schue arrived, holding sheet music and looking rather distressed, "There you all are! Leave a note or something next time guys! I nearly had a heart attack!"

"We apologize Mr. Schue." Rachel smiled, leaning into Finn as he wrapped an arm around her tightly.

"Okay, go get dressed and ready. We've got a big day ahead of us. Everyone meet in the auditorium in twenty minutes, we've got two more numbers to choreograph and then we need to polish everything else off. Off you go!" He ushered them all out, everyone grabbing some sort of food item to eat as they got ready. They split into genders again, heading towards their different bags.

"He didn't!" Rachel sighed, pulling the denim shorts out of her duffel bag once the girls were changing in the dressing room.

"Whoa Berry, I didn't even know you owned a pair of normal shorts." Santana laughed, pulling on her own clothes.

"Don't worry about it Rachel, with your legs, they'll look fine." Tina smiled, staring slightly enviously at the diva's long tanned legs.

Rachel sighed and changed, pulling on the denim shorts and white tie top. She pulled her hair out of the messy bun, sighing as she realized her messy curls were all over the place. Using her fingers, she managed to tame it slightly and she pulled on her sandals which she'd worn the previous day.

When they walked back out onto the stage, the boys were already stood there and Finn smirked as Rachel approached him with a scowl on her face. "I can't believe you!"

"You look beautiful baby, I promise." He smiled and kissed her lightly, smiling in victory as her lips curled up against his.

"Finn, Rachel, on your own time please. Okay, we've got work to do. Let's start with a Night to Remember then the boys can go get everyone lunch whilst the girls work on I Won't Say I'm In Love." Mr. Schue explained, standing purposefully in between Finn and Rachel causing everyone else to snigger. "Girls, stage left. Boys, stage right."

They spent the next few hours choreographing, it was difficult and Rachel spent most of her time with Finn, going over small sections that he just couldn't get. Finally they finished and Mr. Schue headed down to the audience so that he could watch.

The group spun and danced around the stage, very nearly replicating the scene from the movie with a few minor adjustments in regards to the dancing. They finished mingled in together with big smiles on their faces and they all burst into laughter the minute the music finished.

"I think that's one of the cheesiest things we've done and we've done some pretty cheesy things." Puck laughed, standing up from where he'd been down on one knee.

"I know it's cheesy but it'll be a real crowd pleaser, especially with the younger audience that we're expecting tomorrow." Mr. Schue smiled, clapping happily.

"Can we go get some food now? I'm starving!" Sam exclaimed, flopping back onto the stage dramatically.

Everyone laughed and Mr. Schue rolled his eyes. "Yes, you boys can go and grab some food. Girls, let's get started on I Won't Say I'm in Love."

The boys all grinned and hopped off the stage, heading for the door.

"Oi! You gonna grab us something?" Santana yelled, hands on her hips. The boys all turned back, their faces red as they remembered the girls.

"What'd you want?" Puck asked.

"Big Mac meal with fries and a large Diet coke."

"I needs to get my chicken wrap on. Oh and a large Diet coke!"

"Are you all simply planning on going to McDonalds? That's rather unfair seeing as they offer no options for those of us who wish to not eat the produce from the carcass of some poor animal!"

"Could someone please get something for Lord Tubbington? He loves McDonalds, especially the chicken nuggets!"

"I can't make a decision here!"

The girls all started speaking at once and Puck sighed, looking at the other boys. "SHUT IT! I can't hear you all when you all talk at the same time. Mike, you get Tina. Finn, you get Princess over there. Sam, you're on Mercedes. Kurt, you get Brittany. Santana, what'd you want?"

The boys did as they were asked and separated to the different girls. Finn wandered over to Rachel with a smirk on his face. "We're planning on McDonalds, you want me to swing by that little vegan takeout place?"

Rachel grinned up at him, her happiness at his statement evident in her eyes. "Could you? Please?"

"Course baby, can't have you going hungry. There's nothing of you in the first place." He smirked and wiggled his fingers around her waist, making her giggle.

"Finn!" She laughed as he turned it into full on tickling. The others were so wrapped up in their own conversations that none of them noticed, except Mr. Schue who simply smiled at them.

"Hudson!" Sam's voice rang out, imitating Coach Beiste. Everyone, including Rachel, burst out laughing as Finn's head snapped up in surprise.

"That was mean." Finn rolled his eyes, placing Rachel back down on the floor.

"Come on then! We're all hungry here! The sooner you leave, the faster we get food!" Santana snapped, rocking back and forth in her trainers.

"Whatever Satan." Finn sneered before he turned back to Rachel, pecking her lips. "See you later baby."

"Bye!" Rachel grinned, giving him a slight push towards the guys as she saw everyone looking annoyed over his shoulder.

"Get in Hudson." Puck gestured to the passenger seat when they reached their trucks which were parked next to one another.

"Actually, I gotta go grab something for Rach. McDonalds isn't exactly vegan friendly." Finn explained, heading to his own truck before Puck's hand on his shoulder stopped him.

"Figured as much, that vegan takeout place she freaking loves?" Puck asked as they both climbed in and Finn looked at him slightly oddly. "Oh don't give me that Hudson, I know Rachel. I've known her since we were born, I know all those annoying details, and she knows them about me too. We'll swing by there first."


	13. Bad News

Rachel frowned as she approached the Hudson-Hummel household. She and Finn were supposed to be hanging out that afternoon and she'd agreed with him the day of the charity performance that she'd get to his at around 1. Normally this would all be alright but she hadn't heard from Finn since he'd dropped her off after the concert two days before.

He'd happily kissed her goodbye and told her that he'd call her when he got home. He hadn't called.

Rachel hadn't heard from Kurt either since the same day and Mercedes confirmed that he'd gone radio silent as well. Puck told her that he hadn't been online to play Call of Duty and a quick call to Sean confirmed that he'd missed their weekly meet up.

Rachel was worried but she also felt like she shouldn't be there. She just had an odd sort of feeling that perhaps she should go home and wait for Finn to call.

As she stood on the doorstep contemplating this, the door swung open to reveal a very tired looking Kurt. "Rachel?" He asked, frowning slightly at the sight of her. He was dressed in his pajamas despite it being the middle of the day and his eyes were red, still filled with water.

"Um, Finn and I had plans?" She said, more of a question then a statement and it was as if something clicked in Kurt's mind. He sighed heavily and stepped outside, shutting the door beside him.

"I'm assuming he didn't tell you then. When we got back from the concert, Carole and Dad weren't here. They were at the hospital. Carole's mother had a heart attack and she didn't make it through the night."

Rachel's eyes widened and everything slid into place in her mind. "I'm so sorry, how's Carole?"

"As well as can be expected I guess. She got up and dressed this morning which is more than can be said for Finn. He's just lying there on his bed, staring at the ceiling. We've all tried talking to him but he just doesn't reply." Kurt sighed again and Rachel could tell that this was weighing on his mind heavily.

The door swung open again and Burt was standing there, a perplexed look on his face. "There you are Kurt, oh, hello Rachel."

"I was thinking maybe Rachel could try talking to Finn?" Kurt suggested, looking hopefully at his dad who nodded, smiling slightly at the girl in front of him.

"I think if anyone will get anywhere, it'll be Rachel. Come in." Burt stepped aside and let the two teenagers into the house. Peeking into the living room, Rachel saw Carole sat on the sofa. She was watching the TV but she didn't really seem to be watching it; it was obvious that her mind was somewhere else.

At Kurt's small push, she made her way up the stairs and towards Finn's room. The door was open, as if he didn't care who saw him but when Rachel did see him, her heart broke a little.

He was curled into a ball on his bed and his shoulders were shaking. He was crying. Rachel tentatively entered the room, sinking down onto the bed by his head.

She reached out and softly stroked a hand over his short brown hair. Finn rolled around, a confused look on his reddened face. "R-Rach?"

"Hi baby." She smiled sadly, continuing to run her nimble fingers through his soft hair.

"What are you doing here?" He sniffed, looking up at her.

"Kurt told me what happened. He also told me that you haven't moved for two days." She sighed, raising an eyebrow but not in a mean way. She decided against mentioning the fact that they had plans, not wanting him to feel guilty; he was already feeling bad enough.

"I-I..." Finn stuttered, his caramel eyes filling with tears.

"Shh, shh, it's okay." Rachel moved closer, pulling his head onto her lap. He turned his head into her stomach and cried, his tears leaking through the material of her dress. His lanky arms clasped around her waist, grasping desperately at the back of the dress. "Just let it out."

He shuddered and sniffled for at least half an hour before his grip loosened and he moved away from her slightly. Slowly, he sat up with his arms still around her waist. With strength he didn't realize he possessed, he pulled her sharply into his lap and held her close, burying his head in her neck. He roughly planted kisses onto her neck, his grip on her was tight.

Lifting his head, Finn smashed his lips down on Rachel's and she gladly reciprocated. Finn loved her, she knew that and so she poured the love she felt for him back into his kiss. And that was also why she didn't fight it when he roughly pushed her back into the bed.

Afterwards, Finn rolled into his back, huffing and puffing. He let out a loud gasp and turned back to her. He pulled Rachel into his arms with a soft care that he hadn't possessed a few moments before.  
"I'm so sorry baby, I wasn't thinking." He sighed, kissing her long brown hair over and over. "I love you so much."

"I love you too baby." Rachel smiled, leaning her head softly into his shoulder.

"I should have been gentler, I was far too rough with you. You're too special to be treated like some sort of whore. Baby, I love you so much. You're so beautiful and for some reason, you let me love you. I cannot be more grateful that you let me do that. I love you to the moon and back, to goddamn Pluto and back Rachel. I'm so sorry. God, I'm such an idiot!" Finn sighed, lifting her head so that she could see the tears running down his face.

"Finn! Stop it! You're not an idiot, far from it. I love you so much and you're hurting. When you're hurting, I'm here for you. That's what I'm for and it wasn't as if it wasn't enjoyable for me." She held his face in her hands and rubbed her thumb over his cheek. "Now, tell me about your grandmother."  
"She was amazing. I remember trips to her house as a child. She was always smiling and there was always so much food; biscuits, sandwiches, cakes. She had this journal which she was always writing something or other in. Funny things that me or my cousins would come out with or recipes that she just made up on the spot." Finn smiled sadly as he thought of his late grandmother.

"She sounds like a remarkable woman." Rachel smiled, continuing to stroke his cheek.

"She was. I just, I miss her so much." He sniffled, pulling her into his lap.

"You know that's alright, of course it's alright." She held him tightly, leaning up to kiss his hair.

"The f-funeral is next week. Will you come with me? I need you there." Finn looked at her desperately and she nodded her head.

"Of course I will."

The next week passed quickly. Rachel spent most of her time at Finn's house; the grieving boy needed some motivation to keep going every so often.

The day of the funeral, Rachel woke early and dressed in the black dress she kept in her wardrobe for these unfortunate moments. It was lace and fell to her knees. She pulled on a simple pair of black heels and a black cardigan before heading quickly to Finn's house. She pulled up at the same time as another car filled with teenaged girls. She assumed that these were Finn's cousins, she knew that he was the only boy in a female dominant family. Climbing out of the car, she entered the house before they did. Finn and Kurt were in the kitchen, both dressed smartly. Finn held a locket in his hands and tears were streaming down his face while Kurt rubbed his back. The smaller boy caught Rachel's eye as she entered the room and a look of relief passed over his face. Rachel quickly made her way over and took over from Kurt. Finn seemed to notice the change and turned around. With a sad smile he pulled Rachel down into his lap, seeking comfort from her embrace which she gladly gave. Voices travelled through the house from the hallway.

"It's so good to see you Aunt Carole. I'm so sorry." A girl's voice came first and Carole answered.

"It's just a pity about the circumstances. Come in, Finn's in the kitchen." The mother spoke and soon enough, the click of heels sounded along the hallway.

Rachel made to move as the girls entered but Finn held her in his lap, refusing to let her up. Carole sent her a sad smile and reached out, squeezing her hand. Rachel found it sort of odd, she felt that she should be comforting Carole, not the other way around.

"Finn, say hi to your cousins." Carole instructed when Finn made no move to greet the girls.

"Hi Susan, Jill, Jane." Finn said quietly, still talking into Rachel's shoulder.

"Hi Finn. You must be Rachel?" Susan, the eldest smiled, shaking Rachel's hand.

The funeral was a nice way to say goodbye to a wonderful woman. Finn held Rachel's hand the entire time and hid his tears in her shoulder when he cried. Kurt was there for Rachel when it got slightly too much for her and the girl was grateful to her best friend. Finn's cousins cried from the moment they arrived at the church to the moment he left and they found support it each other, their hands linked in a line. Other members of Finn's family made up the room. Aunts and uncles and the lot. Carole was almost radio silent the entire time. Her hand clasped Burt's tightly and she spoke only to greet her siblings who hugged her tightly.

As they drove back to the house, Finn still had his arms wrapped around Rachel's waist and she looked down at his hair, her fingers running through it. There was one thing that she knew, she loved this boy. She was going to be there for him like he had been for her so many times.


	14. A Big Day Part 1

Rachel sighed as she swung in the hammock on her front porch, it didn't feel quite right without Finn there. Still, she enjoyed softly swinging back and forth as she watched the small town of Lima slowly awaken. That was one of the perks of summer, having time to appreciate the morning. She had always been an early riser and it was a habit that she couldn't break, even during the three long months of summer.

The paperboy rode past, skillfully throwing the papers onto the porches of the surrounding houses. Her fathers were wealthy so Rachel lived in the nicest area of Lima, surrounded by houses as big as her own. It was a small area, many of the families living in Lima weren't that well off. Quinn lived a few streets away and Kurt and Finn were only a few blocks away. Despite her neighbors being a significant distance away from the house, her fathers had received many complaints from the neighbors about the music that was constantly radiated from the Berry household. Most of the time it was Rachel, causing her fathers to soundproof her room, but every so often the singing came from one of her fathers.

The newspaper landed by her feet and the middle school kid gave her a wave as he continued on his way, turning down the next street. The sun was streaming down, illuminating Rachel and her outfit for the day. A light blue dress covered in white polka dots with a halter neck and on her feet were a pair of white wedges. Technically, she wasn't supposed to be wearing heels again yet but she also wasn't supposed to be dancing, especially not on pointe.

The door to the house across the road opened and old Mr. Smith wandered out, his wife just behind him.

"Good morning dear!" Mrs. Smith waved at Rachel and she smiled, walking over to road to greet them.

"Good morning!" She grinned, embracing the woman warmly. The Smiths were an elderly couple that had lived across from the Berry's for Rachel's entire life. They'd retired to Lima from England when they hit 60 to be closer to their daughter who had moved over a couple of decades before. They used to babysit Rachel when Mrs. Puckerman was working and Rachel loved the two of them as if they were her own grandparents. She'd never really had guidance from that generation aside from the Smiths. Her dad's parents had passed away when Rachel was a toddler and her Daddy's parents had disowned him when he had come out; they didn't want anything to do with Rachel. "Where are you two off to today?"

"Oh, we're headed for the craft fair downtown. It should be fun, it's held by our church. Judy Fabray is running it mainly." Mrs. Smith explained, slowly making her way towards the car. Rachel rushed over to help her and the woman smiled gratefully.

"Probably to distract herself from her wayward daughter. I tell you Rachel, your fathers are so lucky to have a sensible girl such as yourself and not some irresponsible tart." Mr. Smith rolled his eyes, climbing into the driver's seat.

Rachel shot Mrs. Smith a confused look and the old woman tutted disapprovingly. "Quinn Fabray showed up at church on Sunday with pink hair, wearing something that could hardly be called clothes, and stinking of cigarette smoke."

"Seriously? The last time I saw her, she was still prim and proper." Rachel said, her eyebrows shooting up to her hairline. She carefully helped the elderly woman into the car and smiled, leaning down to kiss her cheek.

"Goodbye dear, I'll see you soon." Mrs. Smith smiled.

"Bye, have fun at your craft fair." Rachel grinned, stepping back from the car and shutting the passenger door.

"Bye chicka." Mr. Smith grinned, blowing her a kiss.

"Drive safe sir." She grinned, reciprocating the action.

She waved the car off and returned to her porch. Her phone was flashing and she picked it up, smiling to see a text from Finn.

_Morning baby, pick you up in 10? Gotta treat my girl, it's a big day ;) Love you – F_

Rachel frowned, big day? Why was it a big day? She quickly flicked open her calendar on her phone. There was nothing scheduled in. She frowned and texted back, hoping he wasn't too bad.

_Sounds perfect :D I'm a little lost though baby, big day? – R*_

She continued to flick through her mind as to what it might be. It was no one's birthday and both of their parents were home so it wasn't anything sexual. Her phone went off again and she gasped, looking at the message.

_Cool, be there in a few __ Seriously? Call the newspapers, Rachel Berry forgot something! Just kidding baby, our last Glee meeting was two months ago, ring any bells? – F_

Their anniversary! She couldn't believe that she'd forgotten their anniversary! She was so certain that she'd screwed everything up that by the time Finn drove up to her house she'd bitten nearly all of her nails off and was close to making a hole in her porch from pacing back and forth too much.

"Whoa! Baby, you okay?" Finn asked as he climbed out of the truck and saw the state that Rachel was in.

"Oh, I'm so sorry Finn! I'm such a terrible girlfriend! I can't believe that I forgot our anniversary! Just do it!" She cried, continuing to pace.

His eyes widened and he grasped her shoulders to cease her pacing. "Baby, calm down. Since when are you a bad girlfriend, it's one day. I really don't mind. Come on gorgeous, breathe. I'm not breaking up with you, I'm too selfish for that." He grinned and pulled her into his arms, softly running his hands through her ponytail. Finally her breathing began to return to a steady pace and she returned the hug, laying her head on his chest. "You okay?"

She nodded but didn't open her mouth to speak, feeling safe in the circle of his arms.

"Do you want to go?" He asked, kissing her forehead sweetly. Her head nodded against his chest and she lessened his grip on him, allowing him to lead her to his truck. He carefully lifted her in and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear before shutting her door and climbing in the driver's side.

"Where are we going?" Rachel asked, her voice finally back as she looked at him.

"The diner. I thought we could get some breakfast. It's completely vegan friendly." He smiled, linking her hand in his free one with a smile on her face.

"That sounds wonderful. Although I have a lesson with Sean later. Perhaps we could go there afterwards?" She grinned, a look of adoration on her face.

"Of course beautiful and then, I'm taking you out tonight." He grinned as they pulled up at a red light, leaning over to kiss her cheek.

"Finn, it's too much." She sighed, fiddling with their enjoined hands. She still felt immensely guilty.

"Nothing's too much for you beautiful." He smiled, turning into the parking lot of the diner. Carefully, he slid her towards him and lowered his lips onto hers, smiling as she moaned into his mouth. "Come on gorgeous, gotta get some food in you." He smiled and gently lifted her out of the truck, clambering after her.

"You know my neighbors told me something odd this morning." Rachel mentioned after they were seated at a table and happily munching on their food.

"Really?" Finn asked, his mouth full of pancake. One of his hands rested comfortably on her knee, drawing smooth circles with his thumb.

"Apparently Quinn's gone wayward. She's dyed her hair pink and is smoking." Rachel relayed the information Mrs. Smith had told her that morning.

"That I need to see to believe." Finn replied, his eyebrows raising.

"Well then look Hudson." A voice came from behind them and they both whirled around to see a girl with short pink hair. Her clothes were black; the cut off top exposed her toned stomach and her shorts were ripped with small holes in them. It looked nothing like the prim and proper all-American girl they were so used to. "Believe it yet?" It seemed like an awful juxtaposition. The previously put together Quinn stood in a diner designed like a scene out of her old self's dreams.

"It's good to see you Quinn." Rachel grinned, trying to not let her surprise show on her face.

"Sure it is Berry. See you at school." Quinn scoffed before turning around and exiting the diner. The couple watched as she approached a man who looked twice her age, and wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing him passionately.

"Told you." Rachel said, looking back at Finn in slight shock.

"Let her act out, it's her life." Finn shrugged, kissing her cheek sweetly. "I have a present for you."

"Finn." She sighed, looking up at him with the same expression she'd been wearing whenever he mentioned the occasion.

"If you pull that face again, I'll just have to kiss it off of you." He smiled, pulling a rectangular box out of his pocket.

She opened it when he placed it in her hands and gasped as she flicked open the box. Hanging from a small delicate gold chain was Finn's name and she smiled, looking up at him. "Finn?"

"I wanted to prove to you that I'm serious this time around. I know you bought that necklace because I was a dick, I wasn't treating you right. I was worried about my rep. This is a promise that when we go back to school, I'm gonna treat you properly because you're amazing Rachel. You deserve to be treated like the star you are." Finn stroked a thumb over her cheek slowly, keeping her gaze on his. Tears slowly began to run down her face and he wiped them away, occasionally leaning forward to kiss them away.

"I love you so much." She stuttered out, the look in her eyes one of complete and utter adoration.

"I love you too gorgeous, so much." He smiled and kissed her, tangling his hands in her hair as her arms slipped around his neck.

As they pulled away panting, Finn carefully pulled the necklace out of the box. Looping it around her neck, he flicked the clasp into place and pulled her hair out, kissing her forehead when he was done. "There, perfect." He grinned as she fingered the pendant.

"It's beautiful." She grinned, her eyes downcast as she looked at the pendant.

"You're beautiful." He smirked, his lips on her temple.

"You cheeseball. Let's eat." Rachel laughed, turning back towards her food.

Later Finn pulled up at Sean's house. "You want my hoodie?" He asked as they climbed out, looking over her outfit. She looked gorgeous with her long tanned legs and curled locks but that was the problem. Sean was his bro but he was also a pervert.

"Finn, Sean won't try anything." Rachel rolled her eyes, heading for the doorstep with a smile on her face. She knocked happily and then grinned up at Finn as she interlocked their fingers.

The door swung open and Mrs. Fretthold appeared, looking happier than either of them had seen her. "Hello Rachel darling, Finn." She smiled and stepped aside, allowing the teenagers to enter.

"Good morning Mrs. Fretthold, how are you?" Rachel asked, a polite smile on her face.

"Very well dear actually. Sean's been making progress in his physical therapy and earlier, the doctor said that he's on his way to regaining feeling." The middle aged woman grinned and the teenagers grinned at each other, excited for their friend.

"That's awesome Mrs. Fretthold." Finn said excitedly, trying to look around the corner. "Can we see him?"

"Of course, go right through." She smiled, moving aside to let them past.

"Fretter!" Finn laughed as he entered the boy's room, picking up his hand and softly clicking their fists together.

"Wasn't expecting you Hudson." Sean smiled, happy to see his friend. He grinned wider as Rachel entered confidently. "Hi hottie."

"Good morning Sean, how are you? Your mother has just informed us of the good news." Rachel grinned, rocking back and forth in her heels excitedly.

"Yeah, it's alright I suppose. It'll take a while though hottie." Sean grinned, winking at Rachel.

"Watch it Fretter." Finn said teasingly, wrapping an arm around Rachel's waist.

"Don't worry Hudson, I won't steal your girl. Unless she comes willingly." Sean laughed, throwing another wink in Rachel's direction. The girl rolled her eyes but chuckled slightly.

"Sorry Sean, I'm all Finn's." She smiled as Finn settled into the armchair by Sean's bed and tugged her into his lap carefully.

"So what's been going on?" The paralysed boy asked. The couple and his mom were his only link to the outside world, apart from his laptop which his mom had to type for him on.

"Not very much particularly." Rachel smiled, flicking her bangs off of her face as Finn wrapped his arms around her waist, softly caressing her dress.

The couple explained the benefit concert and the songs that they had sung in it. Finn informed Sean of his grandmother's passing which made the boy rather upset. Sean had known Finn's grandmother well; she lived nearby and she had often brought him a plate of fresh cookies whenever she baked them.

"What are we singing today then?" Sean asked, gazing at Rachel with a smile on his face.

"What are you in the mood for?" The girl grinned, removing Finn's arms from her waist and standing up. When she turned to look at him, he had a pout on his face. "Don't pull that face Mister, and don't you be looking so pleased with yourself either." The second part was directed to Sean who had a smug look on his face.

"How about the one that we started with?" Sean grinned.

Rachel grinned back and opened her mouth. "_Is it getting better, or do you feel the same?_"

An hour and a half and many more songs later, Finn and Rachel left Sean's house. They promised to visit him more frequently and urged him to call is there were any more advancements in regards to his physical therapy.

"So, where now?" Rachel asked, grinning as Finn helped her into his truck.

"Well gorgeous, that's for me to know and for you to find out." He winked, shutting the passenger door. He climbed into the driver's side and looked over to see Rachel sat there with a pout on her face. Grinning, he pecked her lips. "You'll find out soon enough, beautiful."

"I want to know now." She said frowning as Finn pulled out of the Fretthold's drive.

"I know, gorgeous." Finn winked and pressed down on the accelerator, chuckling as Rachel pouted again. "You know, all that pout is doing is making me want to kiss you."

"Maybe that's why I'm doing it." Rachel smirked, flicking her ponytail over her shoulder.

"Not while I'm driving, Little Miss Tease." He smirked and placed his free hand on her thigh, softly caressing her leg through the fabric.

"The park?" Rachel asked as they pulled up in front of the green expanse. Finn grinned and reached behind his seat, producing a picnic basket. "A picnic? Oh Finn, this is wonderful."

"All for you beautiful." He winked and kissed her cheek, hopping out of his side to open her door and over his hand. He kept her hand in his as they wandered along the path, observing the children on the playground.

"I used to come here all the time." Rachel smiled, gazing at a young girl bossing her little brother around.

"Really? I thought you spent your childhood at the JCC." Finn grinned, releasing her hand and wrapping an arm around her shoulder. He pulled her in close to his body and kissed her brown locks.

"I did but in the summer it got a little stuffy. You see that castle over there?" She pointed to a decrepit looking structure that could really use a lick of paint. The children playing seemed to be avoiding it like the bubonic plague. "Noah and I declared it as ours. We called ourselves the King and the Queen, of course I mostly bossed him about."

"That I can imagine. You know what's funny?" Finn said, chuckling at the image of a little Rachel yelling at Puck when he wasn't doing as she wished.

"What?" Rachel asked, gazing up at him with a contented smile on his face.

"Puck and I were like brothers growing up but I never heard of you until high school." Finn wondered, his eyebrows furrowing. Rachel and Puck always recounted their adventures as kids but Finn and Puck had almost the same number of stories to tell.

"Well I went to a different elementary and middle school and Noah and I only really hung out after temple when Mrs. Puckerman had to work or my dads were out of town." Rachel explained, shrugging her shoulders.

Finn suddenly steered her towards the woods and she looked up at him with a confused look. "Has anyone ever told you that you're really bad with surprises?" He laughed and she giggled slightly.

Soon enough, they were stood in a clearing with treehouse in the tree in front of them.

"Finn?" Rachel asked, looking at him slightly confused. It wasn't particularly fancy; just a platform built around a tree about four foot off the ground with a sheet of plastic acting as a roof. On the pole facing them was a sign with the words "No Girls Allowed" scribbled in childish writing.

"Puck and I built it when we were eight. It took a whole summer but then we spent ages up here. It was an escape of some sort." Finn smiled. He reached up and placed the picnic basket and another bag that Rachel had not noticed before onto the wooden structure. With a grin, he deftly lifted Rachel up and deposited her onto the structure, clambering up after her.

"You built this when you were eight? I don't think I could lift a wooden pole at eight." Rachel said, looking around in amazement.

"Baby, I don't think that you could lift a wooden pole now." Finn chuckled, lying the picnic blanket on the wooden platform.

"I so could, I have muscles!" She protested, lifting her arms as if to show him her muscles but at his raised eyebrow, they both descended into laughter.

"Here." He produced a spread of food that had Rachel drooling. Happily, they settled down to eat with Finn reclining on his elbows and Rachel lying across his chest.

"You know, I've never had a girl up here before." Finn commented after they'd finished eating.

"The no girls allowed sign kind of tipped me off on that front baby." Rachel laughed, raising an eyebrow at her boyfriend who rolled his eyes.

"That was supposed to be romantic Rach." Finn chuckled, running his hands through her ponytail.

"Oh, I apologize, tell me more of your lack of female company." She teased, reaching out a hand to slightly rub his belly. He let out a small laugh before glaring at her.

"Oh, you're going to pay for that beautiful." He laughed and reached out, his hands running up and down her form in a tickle assault. She squirmed underneath his fingers, fits of laughter escaping her as she writhed.

"I surrender!" She exclaimed, collapsing on the deck, still giggling.

"Told you that you'd pay." He laughed, throwing her a wink. He reached for the other bag that he'd brought with him and produced another small box. "Come here gorgeous."

He opened his arms and she gladly crawled over, curling up on his lap like a cat. She looked up at him with a look filled with such love that Finn had to lean down and kiss her, her hands twisting around her neck as he kept his secured around her waist. When they pulled apart, she settled back against him with a hum, leaning her head on his chest.

"So, this is for you." Finn smiled, handing her the box. She gave him a confused expression and flicked the blue box open, letting out a gasp. In the box sat a ring. It was silver and twisted to make an infinity knot over where it would rest on the knuckle. One side of the knot was encrusted with tiny little diamonds and Rachel gasped, her eyes filling with tears.

"Finn." She sighed, looking up at him with teary eyes.

"Shh, gorgeous. Rachel Berry, I've got a year to show you forever and I'll be damned if I don't manage that. You're destined to be on Broadway, for those lights to shine on you and I promise you that I will be right there giving you that standing ovation that you've worked so hard for. I don't know where I'm headed at the moment but every time I think about the future, I picture you. You are my future Rachel. I want to spend the rest of my life making you smile and making you laugh. We're tethered, you know that and I know that. So let's just give into it. I love you so much and I am going to prove to you that this time, I am serious. No more popularity barriers, no more Quinn and no more distractions. This year, it's me and you gorgeous, me and you on top of the world. That's what this ring promises." He smiled and held her close, kissing her softly on her forehead. She grinned up at him as he slid the ring onto her right hand's fourth finger, both of their minds on a different hand and a different ring as he did so.

"Finn, I love you so much." Rachel gasped, tears running down her face now.

"There's one more thing." He grinned and extracted a big box with a bow on it.

"Finn…"

"Before you complain, this one isn't from me and it's practical. It's for you to wear tonight. Kurt picked it out and my mom insisted on paying for it. There's notes in there from both of them." He grinned and passed her the box, grinning wider at the look of amazement on her face.

Rachel carefully extracted a beautiful dusty sage green dress from the box. The top was strapless and covered in small delicate flower detailing which stopped at a gold belt. From there, it flowed down in tulle lined with something more substantial. She placed it down carefully and pulled out the pieces of paper from the box as well.

_Diva,_

_I know you'll freak so here's my low down. Wear the dress with those nude pumps we bought. As for your hair, leave it down with its natural curl and stick in that gold headband of yours. I think Finn's got you covered on jewelry._

_You'll look fantastic, I picked it after all._

_Love you diva,_

_K_

Rachel laughed and placed the note down before unfolding the one from Carole.

_Rachel,_

_I hope you like the dress sweetie and don't stress about the money, it's fine. A woman has to spoil her daughter every now and again, doesn't she? You're an amazing young woman and you've brought out a side of my son that I never really knew existed. I can't thank you enough for that._

_Lots of love,_

_Carole_

"Finn, it's beautiful." Rachel grinned, placing the items back into the box.

"A beautiful dress for a beautiful girl." He said cheesily and she rolled her eyes. "Come on, let's get you home. I know you'll need at least three hours to get ready and it's three now. I'll be at your house at seven."


	15. A Big Day Part 2

Rachel smiled as she stood in front of the mirror, her present hanging beautifully off of her frame. She had to give it to Kurt, the dress really suited her and his suggestions for accessories worked really well. She felt beautiful.

It was ten to seven and Finn was scheduled to pick her up in ten minutes.

_Tell them how I am defying gravity…_

She fretted for a while, not being able to find her phone until she realized that it was sat on her bedside table. "Kurt?" She asked, smiling into the phone.

"Hey Diva, how're you looking?" Her best friend's voice rang down the phone and Rachel smiled, placing things into her bag.

"Good, I think. Your suggestions were amazing by the way. Tell Carole thank you from me, of course I'll be thanking her profoundly when I see her myself but…"

"Elle? You're rambling." Kurt laughed and Rachel stopped talking, a blush climbing up her cheeks. "Any chance you're nervous?"

"Why would I be nervous? It's Finn and whilst I feel terrible about forgetting our anniversary, he makes me feel safe and loved. No need for nerves." She said as if she was also convincing herself.

"Rachel? What's going on? I know you better than that." Kurt replied, sighing at her almost mechanic response.

"I don't even know! I love Finn, I really love him."

"But?" Her friend prompted only urging the growing knot in Rachel's stomach.

"He's being so sweet and considerate. An amazing boyfriend. And here I am stringing him along. Finn doesn't want to come to New York! He's such a country boy and I think Carole might kill me if I make her son move 532 miles away! I love Finn so much and I really want to enjoy the time that I have with him but I can't help but think that we have an expiry date." Rachel sighed, flicking some lint off the skirt of the dress.

"Rachel, who says it has to? Blaine has another year of school after we leave and we're fully planning on doing this thing long distance. If there's anyone who will make it, it's you and Finn. Now relax, don't think about that tonight. Think about Finn and your nauseating love." Kurt smiled and Rachel giggled, her breathing returning to normal.

"Thanks Kurt, you always know what to say." She grinned, checking her appearance once more.

"That's my job. Now go and have fun. Love you diva." With that the call ended and Rachel smiled, heading into her bathroom. She hung up her towel and sorted out the mess that she'd made with her makeup earlier. As she tidied, she was singing Walking on Sunshine, having it stuck in her head for some reason.

When she finished and headed out into her room, she jumped as she saw Finn reclined on her bed with a pink rose in between his fingers. He smirked at her and twirled the flower between his fingers.

"Careful, beautiful." He smiled and stood, making his way over to her. "We don't want you hitting your pretty little head. You look gorgeous by the way."

Rachel smiled, one sentence from Finn and suddenly she felt fine again. He had a sort of calming effect over her. "Thank you Finn, you look very handsome." She grinned and straightened his tie slightly. She was right, he was dressed in a black shirt and black dress pants with a tie the same color as her dress.

"You ready to go?" He asked, fiddling with a strand of her hair. She smiled and nodded, allowing him to lead her out of the house and towards his truck.

"So where are we going?" Rachel asked as they drove through the streets of Lima, their hands entwined.

"Uh uh, you'll just have to wait and see. You're really not good with this surprise thing are you gorgeous?" Finn laughed and brought their entwined hands up to his lips, kissing along Rachel's fingers.

It wasn't long until they were pulling up into one of Lima's best restaurants. It was somewhere that Rachel's dads went a lot for their date nights and it wasn't ever very crowded due to its prices.

"Finn…" Rachel said, looking at him in awe.

"If I had a dollar for every time you've said my name in that tone today, I would have at least five Hershey's bars right now." Finn laughed and kissed her hair, helping her out of the truck.

Dinner was nice, the service was good and the food was excellent, if slightly overpriced. Finn was a perfect gentleman, he pulled out her chair and refused to let her pay a dime. Afterwards, Rachel began to head for the truck when Finn tugged slightly on her hand, leading her away from the restaurant car park.

"Trust me." He smiled when she looked up at him confused. They walked down the sidewalk for a few meters before they found themselves at a small park. There was a pond and a small children's play area but Finn pulled Rachel over to the open green space. He laid his jacket out on the grass and laid down next to it, gesturing for Rachel to do the same. She grinned and laid down on top of the jacket, her hand entwining with Finn's again.

"The stars are so pretty." Rachel smiled, gazing up at the twinkling balls of gas above them.

"They're almost as pretty as the girl next to me." Finn grinned cheesily, kissing her forehead.

They stayed in silence for a while, just staring up into the night sky. "Do you ever think about how insignificant our lives are?"

Finn chuckled and pulled her closer so that her head was resting on his chest. "I'd say we're pretty significant."

"But we're just two people on a planet of 7 billion. There's seven other planets in our solar system and the Milky Way is just one galaxy amongst who knows how many." Rachel explained, her eyes locked on the North Star.

"I think that's why we have to treasure every minute. Life goes quickly, even high school has flown by in a flash. So I want to treasure every minute of every day." Finn smiled. "You know, if you look up over there, that little group of stars looks like a sheep."

Rachel giggled and they spent the next 30 minutes spotting shapes in the stars, laughing at some of their more ridiculous suggestions.

Soon enough, Rachel yawned and Finn smiled, stroking her arm. "Come on beautiful, let's get you home."

He helped her up and led her to the truck, helping her into the passenger side before setting off for her house. It didn't take very long and soon enough, Finn pulled into the empty driveway, smiling at Rachel who giggled.

"Come on, you've spoilt me today. Now it's time for me to spoil you." She grinned and led him inside, heading straight for her bedroom.


	16. A Small Rebellion

Rachel squinted as the sun streamed through her window, illuminating the room. Her clock read 9:14 and she smiled, stretching as much as she could with Finn wrapped around her like a cocoon.

"Ugh, five more minutes Mom." He moaned and Rachel giggled, rolling her eyes. One of his eyes cracked open at the sound and he smiled sheepishly. "You're not Mom."

"Good observational skills Finn." Rachel laughed and sighed happily. "Thank you for yesterday, it was amazing."

"I aim to please." Finn winked, kissing her cheek.

"And I was trying to be romantic." Rachel giggled, sitting up and stretching her arms up to the ceiling. She groaned slightly as her muscles tightened, stiff from the previous night's activities.

"A little stiff there baby? What happened to that flexibility?" Finn teased, watching her with a smirk on his face as he flopped into the pillows on her bed.

"You weren't complaining yesterday when you had my leg up by my head." Rachel said, raising an eyebrow at him.

"Aww. Maybe I should give you a massage." Finn grinned, skimming his hand up her leg.

"That would be the, ugh, gentlemanly thing to, ugh, do." Rachel said, her eyes fluttering shut as Finn continued his exploration.

"Come here then baby." He smirked and softly trapped her underneath him, silencing the giggle he elicited with a kiss.

Later, Rachel slumped back onto her bed, a grin on her face. "Well, I definitely need a shower."

"But that involves moving." Finn sighed, wrapping his arms around her waist. "I don't mind if you smell."

"Finn!" She laughed, resting her head on his chest. "I do not smell!"

"Baby, you were the one who said you needed a shower. That was the implication." He laughed, rolling his eyes as she grinned up at him. Maybe he'd been brushing up on his vocabulary but he'd never admit it.

_I'll be there for you, when the rain starts to pour._

"Is that your phone?" Rachel asked, sitting up and looking around.

"Yeah, hang on." He reached over her and fumbled for his pants from the previous night, successfully removing his phone from his pocket. "Hey Burt, what's up? I thought I changed my shift. Oh, I'm so sorry! I completely forgot! Yeah, I'll be there in ten minutes I swear. Okay, see you in a few." He hung up the phone and began throwing his clothes on.

"Work?" Rachel pouted, looking up at him from the bed.

"Yeah, sorry baby. I changed my shift but I forgot that Steve had to go out of town today and I said I'd go in at 11, which was half an hour ago." Finn sighed, pulling his t-shirt over his head.

"Okay." Rachel said softly, the pout still on her face.

"Baby, I don't _want _to go. Now wipe that pout off your pretty face and cover yourself up else I'll never get out of the door." Finn chuckled, picking up Rachel's comforter and throwing it over her naked body.

"Sorry, it's just, I don't know what to do with myself. All alone, in this big empty house." Rachel pouted again, her eyes flicking around her bedroom.

"You're killing me here Rach, I really gotta go. I love you." He rolled his eyes and leaned over, quickly pecking her lips before rushing out of the door.

Rachel sighed and flopped back fully into her pillows, the biggest grin on her face. Reaching for her phone, she dialed Kurt, holding the phone up to her ear.

"Hey Diva." Kurt's voice sounded down the phone, he was obviously very happy. "How was it?"

"So amazing, your brother is quite incredible." She grinned, fiddling with her comforter.

"Oh god, is he still there?" Kurt groaned. "Please tell me you did not call me in the middle of doing the nasty."

"No Kurt, I would never! He just left, he had to go into the shop. I was wondering whether you wanted to go the mall." Rachel asked, trying to comb out her messy hair with her fingers.

"You know I would never turn down a fashion opportunity." Kurt replied and Rachel could practically hear his grin.

"Okay, I'll pick you up in an hour?" Rachel asked, standing off her bed.

"No offense Diva but you're not the best driver. I'd like to go faster than 10 miles an hour. I'll pick you up." Kurt laughed.

"Okay, okay. I'll see you in an hour. Bye." Rachel laughed and ended the call, heading for the shower.

She quickly washed the grim from her hair and body and climbed out of the shower, pulling on a robe. She blasted her hair dry and curled it, grinning as the last curl fell into place. She then applied her makeup, covering up her blemishes and flicking mascara onto her eyelashes. She then headed for her wardrobe, flicking through outfit ideas. She selected a navy dress covered in little pink and white flowers. It was fitted to the waist and then flared out, finishing mid-thigh. She pulled on a pair of navy wedges and then collected her purse and phone, throwing them in a bag.

As she finished clasping the bag together, Kurt knocked on her door. She ran down the stairs and opened it to see her best friend stood there in white capris pants, a navy and white striped top and a sailor's cap.

"Whoa, did you raid Blaine's closet?" Rachel giggled, stepping outside and shutting the door behind her.

"I'll have you know that I am pulling this look off impeccably." Kurt rolled his eyes, climbing back into his car.

"I never said you weren't pulling it off, I just said it's more accustomed to Blaine's taste than your own." Rachel grinned as the Wicked soundtrack started to blast out of the speakers.

"It may be his." Kurt blushed and Rachel laughed.

"I knew it!"

"So, I was thinking, we should head to Eastland in Columbus, god knows the selection is ten times better than in Lima." Kurt grinned as Rachel watched the streets of Lima fly past.

"Sounds good but we won't be there until 2, we won't get much time." Rachel smiled as Kurt pulled out onto the highway.

"Rachel, it isn't Lima, they're open till 9." Kurt laughed, turning up the radio.

They sang Wicked at the top of their lungs the entire way to Columbus, laughing at the odd looks they were receiving from the cars next to them.

Once they arrived in Columbus, they wandered around the mall for hours, their arms becoming heavier with every purchase. Both of their phones were left forgotten in the bottom of their bags. Even on the ride home, they were distracted by their conversations of Broadway and New York. By the time they returned to Lima at 11 o'clock, they had planned everything out from attending Julliard to being married to their respective partners with three children and two Tony's.

Pulling up to the Hudson-Hummel household, they were surprised to see the lights still on. They'd decided that Rachel would stay the night, her dads were away and it was late. Carole and Burt never normally stayed up past ten so they'd planned to explain the next day. They entered the house, giggling as they tried to not fall from the weight of the bags they were carrying.

"Where have you been?" Burt's voice boomed from the doorway to the living room, a scowl on his face.

"We went to the mall in Columbus." Kurt replied simply, removing his shoes.

"And you didn't think to tell us that you were going to be home late?" Carole asked, appearing in the hallway beside her husband.

"You didn't tell them? Mr. and Mrs. Hummel, I am so sorry, I was under the impression that Kurt had informed you of our whereabouts, I'll head home straight away." Rachel sighed, turning around and heading for the door.

"Rachel, you don't need to leave. By the looks of things, you don't even have your car. Head upstairs, Finn in is his room. You can stay in there tonight. Kurt is not having a friend over tonight but I'm not about to let you walk home alone in the dark to spend the night in an empty house." Burt sighed, massaging his forehead. Rachel smiled and kissed her boyfriend's stepfather's cheek. She quickly hugged Carole and shot Kurt an apologetic look before heading up the stairs.

Smiling, she knocked on the door lightly. "Guess who?" She giggled, stepping into her boyfriend's room.

Finn looked up from his laptop and grinned, moving the computer off of his lap. "Hey baby, what are you doing here?"

"Happy coincidence. Kurt and I went to Eastland Mall, you know in Columbus? However, Kurt failed to tell your parents where we were and they aren't particularly impressed but Burt said I could stay in here tonight." Rachel smiled as Finn's face lit up. She placed her bags down by the door and made her way over to him, smiling as he pulled her into his lap.

"Mm, I missed you." He buried his face in her hair, breathing in her scent.

"You saw me not 12 hours ago." Rachel laughed, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"Too long, didn't you miss me?" He said, pouting slightly into her hair.

"Every minute." She chuckled, tucking her head into his neck and planting a few kisses there.

"So, what did you get?" Finn asked, pulling back slightly and wrapping his arms around her waist.

"Wanna see?" She asked, jumping off of his lap. She picked up the bag and placed them on his bed, smirking as his eyes flicked straight to the pink Victoria's Secret bag.

After a quick fashion show, in which Finn got to see the contents of that little pink bag, they settle back down on Finn's bed. Finn sat against his headboard, his legs extended towards the end of the bed and Rachel curled up in between his legs, her head on his chest. Finn told her about his day, a particularly rude character had refused to allow a high schooler to work on his car and Burt had asked him to leave his shop.

"I'm not interrupting am I?" Carole's voice came from the door, smiling at the couple on the bed.

"Nah Mom, we were just talking." Finn smiled, holding Rachel where she was when she tried to move.

"Burt is not impressed with your brother." She sighed, settling down on the end of the bed.

"I am so sorry Carole, I had no idea that Kurt had not told you where we were going." Rachel sighed, looking the woman in the eyes.

"Sweetie, nobody blames you, it's just difficult for Burt. They work in a weird way those two. They work on a simple need to know basis and apparently they have conflicted. He finds it difficult to discipline him though, he's such a good kid that he's never had to." Carole smiled at the couple, she knew that feeling well enough.

"I can't imagine how my dads would react if I did something like that." Rachel sighed, fiddling with Finn's fingers.

"About that, you might want to check your phone. We thought that perhaps you'd told them where you were." Carole bit her lip, looking at the teenager who reached for her handbag, pulling out her iPhone. She'd convinced her dads to let her upgrade from her old brick of a phone but her iPhone was still bedazzled with pink rhinestones.

"Oy vey! I have 16 missed calls from them. I should probably go and call them. Dad's probably the safest option." Rachel threw her head back and slipped out of Finn's arms, heading out of the door. She slipped past Burt and Kurt in the living room, who both looked very uncomfortable, and onto the back porch, dialing her Dad's number.

"Rachel? Oh, are you alright?" Leroy's voice sounded down the phone and Rachel smiled at his calm tone, she'd made the right decision not calling her daddy.

"I'm fine Dad, Kurt simply failed to inform his parents that we went to a mall in Columbus today. It's not a big deal." Rachel explained, settling down on the rocking chair on the porch.

"Okay, I'll have to talk your daddy down. Can you hear him?" Leroy chuckled as he held out his phone so that Rachel could hear her other father.

"She's so grounded! I mean, I don't really know what that entails but once I've googled it, she's in for it! Leroy, look it up! We bought her that phone and she doesn't even have the decency to use it to call us!" Hiram's voice was raised and Rachel could hear him pacing up and down what she assumed was their hotel room.

"You know, sometimes I think your daddy feels he has to be the stereotypical Jewish mother." Leroy laughed to his daughter who giggled at her father.

"It does seem that way, you can tell him it's his fault for raising a JAP." Rachel smiled as her dad laughed loudly.

"Rachel Barbra Berry!" Hiram's voice shouted.

"I may have forgotten to mention that you're on speaker, sorry honey, you're on your own." Leroy laughed, settling back to watch the scene play out.

"Did it not occur to you to let someone know where you were?" Hiram asked, taking the phone into his own hands.

"Daddy, I thought that Carole and Burt knew we were going. It was only Columbus, it's not like we drove cross country." Rachel laughed as Finn slipped out onto the porch, smiling at her.

"Alright, but I'm still not happy with that last comment, little miss." Her daddy said sternly and Rachel giggled.

"Daddy, you have to face it. You've raised a JAP, ask Noah, he'll definitely agree with you. It's not necessary a bad thing, you gave me everything I wanted. It was a joke, I know you find those difficult." Rachel smiled as she heard her dad laughing in the background. Finn smiled at her and sat down on the chaise lounge next to the rocking chair. She flicked her phone onto loud speaker so that he could hear.

"You are so grounded missy, once I figure out what that actually is." Hiram sounded stern but Rachel giggled still, knowing her daddy far too well.

"It means you lock me in my room and remove all my privileges like my car and my laptop. Which is why I know you could never go through with it, I'd just sing until the neighbors complain again." She laughed and Finn laughed, throwing his head back. He thought Rachel's parents were hilarious and terrifying at the same time.

"Nice try young lady, there's a reason we soundproofed your room."

"I'd open the windows." Rachel grinned. She truly loved her fathers. She knew that other teenagers would be killed for talking to her parents like this but this was just how her family worked. Her daddy got wound up about everything which was where Rachel got it from but her sharp wit came from her dad who was quite happy to sit back and watch his husband and daughter fight it out.

"Eh, I couldn't deal with you being in your room all the time anyway. I don't see enough of my baby girl's face as it is. You win this one." Hiram sighed.

"Daddy, I always win." Rachel smiled at Finn who was still laughing.

"Alright, alright, watch that sass baby girl. I swear you are most definitely your dad's daughter. Are you staying with Kurt tonight?" Hiram asked.

"Yes, Carole and Burt insisted seeing as Kurt picked me up from ours and my car is still there." Rachel explained, taking Finn's hand in hers and rubbing circles on the back of his palm.

"Thank the lord, how you passed that driving test I'll never know." Leroy laughed, re-joining the conversation.

"Dad! I am a perfectly adequate driver!" Rachel protested, a pout coming across her face.

"Almost as adequate as your daddy." Her dad laughed. It was a joke in the Berry household that Leroy drove everywhere because Hiram drove so slowly that they'd actually been pulled over for it before.

"Leroy!"

"Okay you two, I'm heading to bed. I'll see you in a couple of days?" Rachel asked hopefully, she loved her dads but she did hardly ever see them.

"We'll be there baby girl. We miss you." Leroy smiled.

"We have presents!" Hiram exclaimed and Rachel laughed.

"Thanks dads. I'll see you in a couple of days. I love you both. Layla tov." She smiled and sighed heavily.

"Layla tov baby girl. We love you too." Her fathers said in unison and the conversation ended, the line going dead.

"They're crazy, the both of them." Rachel laughed, moving to sit in Finn's lap.

"And they love you to the next galaxy and back." Finn smiled, flicking her hair off of her shoulder.

"Do you?" Rachel giggled, biting her lip.

"To the furthest galaxy and back baby." He grinned, pecking her cheek.

She smiled and settled against his chest, too tired to reply. Her eyes fluttered shut and within a few moments, she was fast asleep. Finn chuckled slightly and carried her up to his room, sliding her into his bed. He quickly changed her and then changed himself, slipping under the comforter and pulling her into his arms.


	17. A Very Berry Barbecue

"Finn! Can you get the phone?" Carole called from the kitchen and Finn jumped up from the sofa, heading quickly into the hall to pick up the home phone. It was two in the afternoon and Finn was relaxing in front of a football game replay.

"Hello? Hummel household, Finn speaking." He answered, leaning back against the doorframe.

"Well hello Finn speaking." Rachel's voice giggled down the line.

"Rach? Why didn't you call my mobile?" He asked, furrowing his eyebrows.

"I was hoping to speak to your mother actually Finn." She explained.

"Oh okay, hang on, I'll put her on." He smiled, heading into the kitchen where his mom was sat at the table, paper spread across it.

"Who is it?" Carole asked, reaching for the phone.

"It's Rachel, said she wanted to talk to you." Finn shrugged, hopping into one of the seats at the island.

"Hello? Hi sweetie." Carole smiled down the phone, leaning back in her seat.

"Hello Carole. I was just calling to invite you and your family over for a barbecue at my house this evening. My dads have decided to throw a little get together for the Glee members and their families." Rachel explained and Carole grinned.

"Well, we'll be there darling." Finn gave his mother a confused look which she quickly dismissed with a wave of her hand.

"Thank you Carole, we'll see you at six?"

"Sounds perfect."

"Okay, could you please put Finn back on the line? Dad wants to talk to him." Rachel smiled and Carole handed the phone over.

"Hello?" Finn said into the phone, slightly confused.

"Finn? Excellent. I was wondering whether you'd come over and give me a hand. I need to put some shelves up in the subbasement." Leroy asked and Finn could hear the slight desperation in his voice.

"Ah, run out of room in the shrine?" Finn chuckled. The Berry's subbasement was filled with everything Rachel related. Her birth certificate to her ballet exam records. Her first singing competition trophy to her latest. Her first pair of shoes to her first pair of pointe shoes.

"Yes, we have. Although don't let Hiram hear me agreeing with that name. Anyways, Hiram is terrible at DIY, he's always afraid something will fall on him and ruin his outfit. Can you help? Please?" Leroy chuckled at the thought of his husband.

"I'll be there in a few." Finn grinned, grabbing his keys off of the island and heading for the door. He returned the phone to its cradle and quickly explained to his mom where he was going.

When he arrived at the Berry household, Rachel opened the door with a grin on her face. "Hey baby." She leant in and kissed him quickly, pulling him inside.

"What on earth are we going to do?" Hiram's voice cried out and Finn grinned, flicking his shoes off.

"Daddy! Calm down, come on. Do you really need every drawing I've ever done, framed?" Rachel laughed, pulling her daddy from the living room.

"Rachel! How dare you even suggest such a thing?" Hiram exclaimed, glaring at his daughter.

"Honey, that's really not helping. Why don't you and Daddy make some salad for the barbecue? Come on Finn, let's go and get this done." Leroy swiftly removed Finn and himself from the situation, laughing slightly.

"Nicely done Mr. Berry." Finn chuckled and they headed into the basement, the stage still set up.

"Thank you for doing this by the way Finn, you can tell even this turns into anarchy in this house." Leroy laughed, heading down the next flight of stairs.

The subbasement was a shrine, no matter what Hiram Berry said. It was painted pink and white with boxes dated with every year of Rachel's life from birth to that very day. It took them around three hours to shelve the entire top section of the subbasement. They'd decided to go full out so that Hiram wouldn't have any reason to worry for at least a few years.

By the time they headed back upstairs, Rachel and Hiram were laying food outside on the picnic tables that scattered the Berry's patio.

"All done." Leroy smiled as they stepped out onto the patio.

"Thank you honey." Hiram smiled, quickly kissing his husband.

"I'm going to go change, Finn? Come help me pick something suitable?" Rachel smirked, looking up at her boyfriend hopefully. Finn could practically feel Hiram shooting daggers into the back of his head.

"Why don't you go baby? I think I'm going to help your dads set up." The approving smile from Rachel's dads overruled Rachel's little huff in Finn's opinion.

Mr. Schue and Miss Pillsbury were the first to arrive, big smiles on their faces and potato salad in their hands. Rachel's dads fired up the barbecue and Rachel was still upstairs so that left Finn to entertain them.

"So, how's your summer going?" He asked, sitting down on one of the picnic tables.

"We actually just moved in together." Mr. Schue smiled, taking Miss Pillsbury's hand in his.

"Oh wow, congratulations." Finn grinned, truly happy for the teacher who had become like a father to him.

"Thank you Finn. The Berrys are very clean." Miss Pillsbury smiled, looking around the garden as in approval.

"Yeah, they're perfectionists of some sort. Rachel can't deal with her room being messy, not even one shoe out of place." Finn chuckled, thinking of his girlfriend.

"Well I can't say I'm surprised." Mr. Schue chuckled, knowing his club's resident diva far too well by then.

It was at the moment that Rachel appeared from the house, a grin on her face. She was dressed in denim shorts and a red cropped t-shirt, an upside down treble clef and a bass clef forming a heart over her chest. The halter neck of a bikini was wrapped around her neck and she carried a pile of towels, her sandals clicking on the stone.

"Good evening Mr. Schue, Miss Pillsbury." She grinned, standing behind Finn. She rested her hands on his shoulders and Mr. Schue smiled at her.

"It's nice to see you Rachel, you look very nice." Miss Pillsbury smiled sweetly at the girl. She for one was glad to see the girl kicking back for once, she'd been in her office more than once due to stress related problems.

"Thank you Miss Pillsbury, I love your skirt." Rachel grinned, nodding politely at her teacher.

"So how are you two?" Mr. Schue asked, looking at his leads with a smirk on his face.

"We're good, amazing even." Finn smiled up at Rachel, their eyes looking together and grins spread across both their faces.

"We're going to go and say hello to your dads Rachel." Mr. Schue smiled, knowing that they weren't listening, and tugged Miss Pillsbury over to where Hiram and Leroy were trying to set up the barbecue.

"Ugh, I thought this was a barbecue, not a Finchel porno." Santana's voice resounded around the backyard and Finn and Rachel pulled away from where they'd been attached at the lips.

"Santana Diabla Lopez! Just because your father had to work does not mean that your potty mouth will accepted!" Maribel Lopez said, scolding her daughter with a harsh look on her face.

"Hi Finn! Hi Rachel!" Brittany grinned, taking Santana's hand in her own.

"Hi Britt." Finn laughed, standing up from the bench.

Brittany threw herself into Finn's arms and then Rachel's, her grin making Santana smile.

"You have a lovely home." Whitney Pierce shook Hiram's hand, looking around the large garden in awe.

"You know, there's so many kids in that Glee club that Brittany goes on about, I was half expecting the two of you to be Asian." Pierce Pierce grinned, shaking Leroy's hand. The other man chuckled, returning the hand shake with a smile. "Susan, say hello."

"Hi, I'm Susan. Brittany's little sister." The little blonde girl smiled shyly, flicking her long hair out of her face.

"Hi Susan, I'm Rachel. You know, I think Noah said they were bringing Sarah. Do you know Sarah Puckerman?" Rachel smiled at the girl who looked no older than 10.

"Sarah's in my class." She grinned widely, rocking back on her heels excitedly.

"There you go poppet, it won't just be Brittany's friends." Whitney Pierce smiled, looking down at her daughter affectionately.

"Mercedes Jones has arrived!" The diva called as she entered through the open garden gate. Her parents, who were behind her, rolled their eyes.

"Alright honey, now can you move so your father and I can put this food down?" Ruby Jones laughed, stepping around her daughter.

"You guys don't appreciate my brilliance." Mercedes sneered at her parents jokingly.

"I beg to differ darling, that contract you had us sign when you were 5 does too." Simon Jones laughed, moving to greet the other parents.

Soon enough, nearly everyone had arrived and everyone had settled down. They were just waiting on Mike and his family. The adults had settled down on the picnic benches discussing their children and the glee club. Susan and Sarah, along with Stevie and Stacie Evans, were running around in the grass, playing make believe. The Glee club had settled in an area of the garden, lying in the grass and discussing everyone's summers.

"Hey guys!" Mike called from the gate, a massive grin on his face.

"Hi Mike, your parents couldn't make it?" Tina's mother smiled, looking at her daughter's boyfriend.

"No, they had to work but I did bring someone else with me." He grinned and turned to the gate. He high fived Matt as he walked through, laughing as the Glee club all rushed to their feet, rushing over to greet their former member.

Everyone greeted him, laughing and hugging him, having not seen him for over a year.

"Good surprise?" Mike asked Tina as they stood back watching their friends swarm Matt.

"Best surprise." She laughed, reaching up to peck his lips.

Later, after they'd all eaten their fill, the teens decided to set up a game of touch football. Boys vs. Girls.

They stood in two lines. Finn, Kurt, Matt, Sam and Mike on the left side of the garden and Rachel, Mercedes, Santana, Brittany and Tina on the other. Artie had decided to sit the game out, not wanting to ruin the Berry's lawn with his wheels. They'd insisted it was fine but he was still skeptical. Puck decided against it as well, claiming that he couldn't move after he'd downed 15 burgers.

"Rachel's mine dude." Finn laughed to Matt, both of them eyeing up the girls who were appearing far too cocky.

"Whatever you say bro." Matt laughed, fist bumping his friend.

"Finn! Can we actually play now?" Rachel asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Whatever you say baby." Finn winked and Rachel rolled her eyes but she couldn't deny the blush on her cheeks.

"White girl! Get your head back down to earth!" Mercedes yelled, glaring at her friend.

"It's just a game Mercedes, need you be so competitive?" She giggled, looking at her friend cheerfully.

"That's rich coming from you Elle!" Kurt called, laughing at his best friends.

"Let's play some ball!" Sam grinned, snapping the ball.

By some sort of miracle, Rachel caught the ball when Tina threw it her way. Letting out a delighted squeal, she looked down in a slight state of shook.

"Run Rachel! White boy's on your ass!" Mercedes called out in amusement as she watched Finn heading Rachel's way.

She squeaked again and took off, darting around the others who had stopped running, choosing instead to watch the scene unfolding in front of them.

Rachel was fast but she was small so Finn's long legs soon tore up the distance between the two of them. Reaching her, he quickly snatched up her small body, holding her in his arms. Grabbing the ball, he chucked it towards Sam before turning his attention back to his girlfriend. He slumped down to the floor, pulling her with him. Holding her waist, he grinned. "Got you."

"Finn, was that utterly necessary? Anyway, I thought the concept was that you simply touch your opponent, not pluck them from their air space." She pouted, glaring at her boyfriend.

"Oh, do you want your air space back?" He smirked, running his hand up her side, grinning as she squirmed. Moving his fingers more vigorously, he full out tickled her, her giggles sounding all around the garden.

"It's really nice to see Rachel let loose." Miss Pillsbury smiled, the noise having attracted the attention of the adults.

"Finn's good for her, I think this is the first summer she hasn't been up before 6 every day." Leroy smiled, loving to hear his baby girl happy.

"Hmm…" Hiram sighed, watching the couple closely.

"Hiram, you alright?" Mr. Schue asked, noticing the man's expression.

"Sorry. Finn's a wonderful young man and I know that he makes my baby happy but she's still only seventeen. I just feel like I'm losing her. It seems like only yesterday she was dancing around the living room singing Barbra at the top of her lungs." Hiram sighed.

"Honey, that _was_ yesterday." Leroy smiled, eliciting a laugh from the rest of the adults.

"Didn't they date last year though?" Tina's father asked, smiling at Hiram.

"Yes but neither of them were so invested. I don't think they've spent a day of this vacation apart, they're attached at the hip." Hiram explained, sighing heavily.

"Not to mention the lips, I have walked in on them far too many times this summer." Leroy rolled his eyes, smiling as the others laughed.

"NOAH!" A squeal came from the lawn and the adults looked over to see that Puck had plucked Rachel off of Finn and was carrying her fireman style towards the pool. "NOAH ELIJAH PUCKERMAN, DON'T YOU DARE!"

SPLASH! She flew into the pool and came up spluttering, everyone around the backyard laughing. Rachel grinned and hauled herself out. Everyone assumed she was heading for Noah until she turned towards the picnic table.

"Oh, was that funny Daddy?" She asked, smirking as she made her way towards Hiram.

"Rachel Barbra Berry, don't you even think about it. This shirt is Gucci." Hiram stared at his daughter, a disapproving look on his face.

"Well it's a good thing you have plenty of others like it." She grinned and plopped herself down on her father's lap, wrapping her arms tightly around him and kissing his cheek.

"Rachel!" Hiram explained as he was soaked with water.

"What? I just wanted to give my daddy a hug." She grinned, kissing his cheek and standing up.

"Nice one Songbird." Leroy smiled, high fiving his little girl. She giggled and ran off towards her boyfriend, jumping on him from behind. The adults watched in amusement as he caught her with ease, holding her tightly despite her soaked clothes.

"Pool party!" Sam exclaimed and the teenagers all removed their outer clothing, jumping into the pool. Rachel threw her wet clothes in her parents' direction 'in case her hug wasn't enough'.

"You know, I never realized that Puck and Rachel were so close." Carole smiled, turning to Debbie Puckerman. Hiram had gone inside to sort out his shirt, Leroy following with their daughter's wet clothes.

"Oh yes, they've been close for years now. The JCC really brought them together. They used to pretend that they were king and queen of the world. It was a nuisance trying to get them to come in for dinner." She laughed, watching her son splash his friend continuously.

Rachel squealed, splashing Puck back as hard as she could.

"Is that all you got Princess?" He teased, winking in her direction.

"You know that I am of a small stature Noah." She defended and Puck knew if she wasn't in the water, she be stamping her foot.

At that moment, Santana and Brittany came up behind Puck, putting their fingers over their lips to signal to Rachel. All three girls jumped on him, their combined weight forcing him under the water.

Everyone laughed as he came up spluttering and the three girls high fived, laughing as Puck glared.

"Baby, that was awesome!" Finn laughed, tugging Rachel into his arms.

"You know, I'm quite small and the pool is kind of deep." Rachel smirked, her arms hanging loosely around her boyfriend's neck.

"Oh yeah?" He grinned, rubbing his thumb over the curve of her waist.

"I think I might need a big strong man to hold me up. I don't want to drown." She giggled, her bottom lip between her teeth.

"Well, hop on then baby." He smiled as her legs encircled his waist and she leant in, capturing his lips. Best. Summer. Ever.


	18. In Sickness and In Health

Finn frowned as he knocked on the door to the Berry house again. It was really unlike Rachel to not answer the door. They were supposed to be heading down to the mall with Blaine and Kurt today and he'd told her that he'd pick her up when he'd dropped her off the night before.

Fetching his key out of his pocket, he opened the door himself and climbed the stairs towards her bedroom. The door was closed and he knocked gently before entering, confused when he didn't see her. "Rachel?"

A loud retching noise came from the bathroom and Finn jumped up, rushing towards the side room of his girlfriend's bedroom. There she was, curled over in front of the basin. Her arms were gripping the toilet tightly and she was struggling to flick her hair out of her face.

Moving quickly, he bent down next to her and gathered her long hair in his hand, using the other to rub soothing circles on her back. "It's okay, just let it out."

She heaved again, tears running down her face as she did so and Finn's heart broke. He wanted to just take all her pain away and suffer it for her.

Finally she pulled away from the basin and wiped her mouth, slumping back against him tiredly.

"Come on gorgeous, let's go get some more sleep." He smiled and slowly lifted her into his arms, carrying her back towards her bed. Glancing at the clock which read 9:30, he realized that her parents would already be gone for work and he slid her under the covers.

"F-Finn?" Her broken voice called out, small hands fisting in his t-shirt as he tried to pull away.

"Shh, I'm just going to get you some water. I'll be right back." He smiled softly, stroking her hair.

"Promise?" She asked, her eyes wide and that adorable pout on her face.

"Promise." He grinned and kissed her forehead before heading out of the room. He filled a glass with water and grabbed a couple of popsicles out of the freezer, hoping they would stop the dry retching.

When he returned to her bedroom, Finn had to grin at the sight in front of him. His girlfriend was just so damn adorable. She was looking at something on the floor by her bed with a pout on her face. Following her gaze, he saw that it was her stuffed elephant which must have fallen off of the bed. He placed the water and popsicles on her bedside table before scooping up the stuffed toy and handing it back to Rachel. She grinned widely at him and pushed her hair back from her face.

"Here baby, small sips." He handed her the glass of water and she took a few small sips as instructed, a small sigh of relief escaping her lips.

"T-thank you." Her voice was harsh and rough and Finn wondered what on earth had happened overnight for her to feel so bad when she was fine the night before.

"Shh baby, don't strain that gorgeous voice of yours. Is your hair annoying you?" He asked as he watched her push it away from her face for the billionth time. She gave a nod and he grinned, grabbing a hair tie from her vanity. He slid onto the bed behind her and gathered the long locks in his hands, quickly weaving a braid down her back.

"Ugh." She let out a groan and flopped back against her pillows.

"Come on, just eat one of these and then I'll leave you to sleep." Finn smiled and grabbed a popsicle, pulling the wrapper off. He presented it to Rachel who took it gratefully and slowly sucked on it. If it were any other situation, Finn would be thinking of the mailman.

"Finn?" Rachel asked after she finished eating and Finn had thrown the wrapper and the stick in the wastebasket.

"What's up beautiful?" He grinned, turning to face her.

"Cuddles?" She pouted and Finn grinned again at how adorable she was.

"I could never deny you that." He smirked and crawled under the covers, wrapping her up in his arms.

A few hours later, Finn opened his eyes and smiled to see that Rachel was still fast asleep, curled up into his chest. His phone was ringing so he quickly dug it out of his pocket.

"Hello?" He whispered, trying to keep his voice down in an attempt to not wake Rachel.

"Finn? Where are you? Blaine and I have been waiting for two hours!" Kurt replied, his voice sounding panicked.

"Dude, Rachel's sick. I'm still at her house. Sorry I didn't call."

"Oh okay, that's fine. Let me know next time though, I was freaking out here!"

"Sorry bro, see you later."

"Tell diva I hope she feels better soon. Bye Finn."

Finn hung up the phone and slid out from underneath Rachel, heading downstairs to set up something for his ailing girlfriend.

"Wake up beautiful." He smiled around half an hour later, gently shaking her.

"F-Finn?" Rachel sniffed, that adorable pout back on her face.

"You feeling any better gorgeous?" He asked, perching next to her on the bed.

"A little." She smiled and sighed, hugging her elephant close to her chest.

"Well, I made you some soup and Funny Girl is cued on the TV downstairs." He winked and softly stroked her leg.

"You're the best boyfriend ever." She smiled and stretched her arms forwards.

"Well, I've certainly spent a lot of this summer carrying you around." Finn chuckled and lifted Rachel into his arms, comforter and elephant in tow.

"I'm sorry." She sniffed, snuggling into his shoulder and smiled as Finn kissed her hair.

"I like it. It makes me feel like your knight in shining armor."

"You are." She smiled as he placed her down on the couch. Placing the tray of soup on her lap, he kissed her forehead and stepped back.

"Do you need anything else beautiful?" He smiled, adjusting her comforter and handing her the remote.

"You?" She pouted, grabbing his hand.

"I'm yours. Always." He pulled her into his arms and settled down to watch Barbra Streisand do her thing for the billionth time.

Rachel was snoozing by the time Fanny Brice was singing about being married and Finn smiled, letting his own eyes slide close.

"Finn?" A voice a lot deeper than his girlfriend's called out and Finn sat up, rubbing his eyes. The view of Leroy Berry came into Finn's eyesight and the teenager's eyes widened, desperately searching for an escape route.

"Mr. Berry, this is not what it looks like. She's sick. I would totally detach myself from your daughter but she's kid of fast asleep and…"

"Finn! Stop talking. I can see she's sick. If the empty bowl of soup didn't clue me in, the titles of Funny Girl rolling on the TV certainly did. Just be grateful it was me and not Hiram who found you." Leroy smiled kindly and reached over, placing a hand on his daughter's forehead.

"I'll put her back in her bed. She'll probably sleep better there." Finn smiled, going to move her.

"If Hiram wasn't going to be home in a few minutes, I'd say leave her but he'll go crazy."

As Finn placed his tiny girlfriend back in her bed, Rachel's eyes flickered open and her hands fisted in his shirt.

"Hey Sleeping Beauty, your dads are home." He smiled and coaxed her hands away from his shirt.

"I heard there was a sick little songbird in here." Hiram's voice drifted from the doorway.

"Hi Daddy." Rachel smiled as Hiram approached her bed.

"Thank you for looking after her Finn but I think Leroy and I will take it from here." Hiram smiled and amiably patted his daughter's boyfriend on the back.

"Of course Mr. Berry. Feel better soon Rach." He smiled and kissed her forehead before slipping out of the house.

"Bye baby." Was the small response from the pile of blankets on the bed.

As Finn settled into his own bed that night, he couldn't shake the feeling that he'd been sort of unwanted that day. Just as the thought flickered through his mind, his phone buzzed with a text from Rachel.

_Thank you so much for everything you did today. You really are the best boyfriend ever. I'm so sorry about my dads. They just don't like feeling that they're not needed anymore and seeing their baby girl's boyfriend taking care of her instead of them really shook them up. I love you so much baby xxx_

With a smile, he sent her a message back and shut his eyes, knowing that his girlfriend loved him with all her heart.


	19. Even Summer Has to End

Rachel grinned as she climbed into Finn's truck, her new bathing suit on underneath her white dress. The Gleeks had decided to head out to the lake for Labor Day.

She couldn't believe that it was the end of summer already. It had been the most perfect summer she'd ever experienced and she was ready to go back to school. She was going to miss all her free time though. Time spent just hanging out with Finn, sometimes not even talking.

"Hey gorgeous." Finn grinned from the driver's seat and tugged her towards him so he could connect their lips.

"Ugh, brother back here!" Kurt called from the back seat and Rachel turned around to smirk at him.

"Hi Kurt!" She grinned and Kurt rolled his eyes, leaning over the seat to give her a one armed hug.

"Step on it Finn!" The fashionista called and Rachel laughed, settling back into her seat.

"Dude, I'm not your driver." The tall boy laughed but pulled out of the Berrys' driveway, heading towards the lake.

They turned the radio up and sang pretty much the entire way there, laughing as they all tried and failed to dance in their seats.

"Thank God you're here!" Mercedes called once they pulled up and grabbed Rachel and Kurt, pulling them towards the circle of Glee girls.

"What's going on?" Rachel asked, sitting down next to Brittany and reciprocating the hug she received.

"Ugh, Asian number one's been blushing for half an hour and she wouldn't blab until you and Lady Hummel showed up." Santana sighed, reclining back on her hands.

"Mike and I had sex." Tina grinned and everyone started talking at once, asking their questions.

"Oh my god! Did it hurt?"

"Get in there Boy Chang!"

"How did it happen?"

"Was it magical?"

"Is his junk Asian too?"

"Uh Britt? How can junk be Asian?" Kurt asked, raising an eyebrow at the blonde.

"Santana's is Mexican." She shrugged and the girl in question blushed.

"Britt-Britt, I'm Hispanic and that's private!" She sat up and sent a warning look to the girl, her stern expression softening slightly when their eyes met.

"So, I'm the only virgin left?" Mercedes asked, rolling her eyes.

"Not exactly." Kurt blushed and everyone whipped round to face him.

"Seriously? You haven't jumped on Warbler's rhythm stick yet Lady Hummel?" Santana gasped, lifting her sunglasses off of her eyes.

"I'm just not ready yet." He blushed and everyone shrugged, flopping down in the grass almost simultaneously.

"Hey girls! We going to the beach or not?" Sam called from where the guys were stood, holding all the bags.

"The beach! Sanny, can we build a sandcastle?" Brittany grinned, jumping up from the floor and pulling Santana up as well.

"Of course Britt-Britt. Hey Chang, get in there!"

The girls all laughed as they watched Santana go from sensitive girlfriend to the crass Santana they all knew so well in a split second.

They all headed down to the beach. There were a few other sets of teenagers there and a few families but apart from that, it was pretty much deserted. Brittany skipped ahead, looking very carefree as she determined half of the spots on the beach inadequate.

"Come on Britt! Pick a spot! These sandals are not fit for this much walking." Kurt groaned as Brittany vetoed another spot.

"Why don't we just go here? We'll make it special Britt, don't worry." Santana smiled as her blonde girlfriend nodded, flinging her arms around her.

The boys set everything up and the girls laid their towels out, flopping down to sunbathe. The boys headed into the water, flicking water at each other. Rachel and Mercedes were the only ones still dressed as Finn made his way over to the two girls.

"Hey beautiful, you okay?" He asked, kissing her hair quickly.

She smiled up at him sweetly and nodded. "You going in with the rest of the guys?"

"Yeah, I just wanted to check you were alright. You've been talking about topping up your tan for like a week." He frowned, looking over her still clothed body.

"Yeah, I know. I just… They're all going to tease me!" She frowned, a blush coming across her cheeks and Finn was grateful that Mercedes decided to go and sit with Kurt.

"Baby, you're all sorts of crazy hot." He grinned and ran a hand up her side as she giggled.

"It's not that, but thank you. I've got some pretty serious hickeys down my sides and my hips. Santana was relentless last time she spotted one on my neck!"

"Oh! Fuck Santana, she and Brittany go at it all the time but they can't even hold hands in public." He smiled and kissed her cheek.

"Finn! If Santana is not comfortable with her relationship being out in the open, we should respect that. We don't live in a gay-friendly area. My dads receive all sorts of abuse simply because of their sexuality." Rachel scolded with a frown on her face.

"Okay, I'm sorry baby." He winked and kissed her quickly, making Rachel roll her eyes in amusement.

"Oi Hudson! You coming or what?" Puck yelled from the water, beckoning Finn over.

"I gotta go. Top up your tan." He winked and rushed off, pulling off his t-shirt as he went. Rachel laughed as she noticed red marks all over his back, his own marks from their trysts. She really needed to cut her nails.

"Rachel! You can put your towel next to mine!" Brittany called and Rachel smiled, moving next to the blonde. She laid her towel down in the gap between Brittany and Kurt before pulling her dress over her shoulders. Mercedes jokingly wolf whistled and the girls all giggled, exclaiming their appreciation for her bathing suit. The bikini was bright pink and tiny; the straps crossed over her back and joined the ones wrapping around her neck to tie in a bow at the nape of her neck.

"Looking good Berry, didn't realize Finnocence was such a vampire." Santana winked and Rachel rolled her eyes, folding her dress before lying down on her towel.

Barely any words were exchanged between the girls in the next half an hour as they lay there, allowing the sun rays to slowly brown their skin.

"Sanny?" Brittany's voice finally rang through the silent air surrounding the group.

"What's up?" The Latina asked, groaning as she turned her head towards the blonde.

"Can we build a sandcastle now?"

"Sure, come on."

The two girls left, Brittany skipping down to the shore with way more enthusiasm than Santana was showing.

"I'm going to take a wander by the shore. Would anyone like to accompany me?" Rachel asked, stretching as she stood up.

"I'll come, I have pins and needles." Tina laughed and grabbed Rachel's hand, the two of them taking off down the beach.

"So, do you feel any different now?" The brunette giggled, gently splashing the water with her toes.

"Other than wanting to constantly rip Mike's clothes off? No." Tina laughed and Rachel joined in, nodding her head in agreement.

"It's just impossible to stop isn't it?" She giggled and flicked her hair back, revealing yet another hickey on her neck.

"Evidently, if those hickeys and the scratch marks on Finn's back are anything to go by!"

"Hey ladies." A boy around their age jogged over, a volleyball in his hands.

"Hello." Rachel said courtly, trying to side step him so she and Tina could continue on their way.

"Where do you think you're going so fast?" He smirked, one of his hands falling to hold her in place by her hip.

"Away from you, let her go!" Tina said, glaring at him as Rachel tried in vain to tug away from his harsh grip.

"I'm just trying to figure who let such a hot little body like yours wander around by itself."

"Excuse me?" Rachel asked, stuck in place from shock.

"Well if you were mine, let's just say we wouldn't ever be leaving the bedroom. You'd keep my not so little friend warm all day and all night… AGH!" The guy moved his hand down to Rachel's bikini clad butt but jumped back in pain as her knee collided with his privates.

"Yo! What's going on over here?" Puck asked, grabbing his towel and jogging over with Finn not far behind him.

"I was just asking these lovely ladies whether they would join us for our volleyball game, we're a couple short." The guy explained, stepping back from the girls a considerable amount when he saw Puck's protective glare.

"Ha, Princess playing volleyball?" Puck laughed and Finn chuckled as Rachel pouted at the two of them.

"Don't worry sweetheart, I'll give you a hand." The guy smirked and reached out, running a hand up Rachel's side. She jumped out of shock and stepped back into Finn's arms as Puck growled.

"Listen buddy, just because a girl's in a bikini doesn't give you any right to put your bear claws all over her." The mohawked boy growled, stepping in front of Tina as the guy turned to smirk at her.

"You okay gorgeous?" Finn asked, tilting her chin up so she was staring into his eyes. She gave a slight nod but buried herself in his chest, the incident had obviously shaken her. He kissed her hair and held her close, rubbing soothing circles into her back.

"Tina, babe! You okay?" Mike asked, jogging over with Sam in tow. Both of them had concerned looks on their faces as they took in Rachel and Puck's protective stance over Tina.

"Look dude, we don't want a fight. Just run back to your little game and we'll leave you alone." Sam frowned, going to stand next to Puck as the girls made their way over, intrigued as to what was going on.

"Maybe you should tell your little slut friends to stop prancing around in front of me in teeny tiny bikinis then."

"Oh no me gusta!"

"What did you just call my girlfriend?"

"Hell to the no!"

"Listen here douchebag!"

The yelling alerted the guy's friends and a blonde girl came running down the beach. "Mark, what's going on?"

"This dick your boyfriend?" Puck asked, looking at the girl.

"No, he's my twin brother." The blonde frowned, looking back and forth between her brother and the other group of teenagers.

"Well maybe you should teach your brother here some manners. You don't tell a girl that you'd keep her as your sex slave just because she's wearing a bikini!" Tina exclaimed, causing pretty much everyone to gasp.

"He said that to you?" The blonde gasped.

"Not to me, to Rachel." Tina answered, gesturing to the small diva who was still wrapped up in Finn's arms.

"Oh, I am so telling Mom!" The blonde exclaimed, grasping her brother by the ear and pulling him back up to their group of friends.

"Wow, what a dick."

"You sure you're okay baby?" Finn asked once more as Rachel removed herself from the encircle of his arms.

"I'm fine Finn. Britt, how's the sandcastle coming?"

Leaving the unfortunate incident behind them, the club had a fun day at the beach. They helped Brittany build an entire sand town, equipped with sand cars and buses. They played Keep Away in a big game in the lake, using Rachel and Brittany as the balls.

"You wanna take a walk?" Finn asked, extending his hand to Rachel who nodded, standing from where the club had settled down just talking.

"I can't believe we go back to school tomorrow." Rachel sighed, leaning her head on his shoulder as they walked.

"I know. I don't want summer to end, it's been awesome. Mostly because I got to spend almost every minute of it with my beautiful, amazing girlfriend." Finn winked, kissing her hair.

"Senior Year will be awesome too though. We're going to win Nationals this year and we'll live happily ever after." Rachel laughed, throwing her free arm out to the side.

"Sounds awesome baby." Finn chuckled and scuffed the sand with his bare feet.

"Let's make a promise to each other. Neither of us can deny that this year is going to be hard. Applying to colleges and thinking about the future, it'll put a strain on our relationship no matter what we do. So, I think we should promise that we're really going to try. We're going to try to stay together, no matter the obstacles that McKinley High throws our way. Promise?" She stopped walked and extended her pinky finger with a smirk on her face.

"Promise." Finn grinned and linked his pinky with hers, using it to pull her towards him. Wrapping his arms around her waist, he connected their lips, an unmistakable feeling of home washing over him.

"Hey! Come on lovebirds! It's time for a jam session!" Puck called and the couple broke apart, making their way over to their friends.

"What song are we singing?" Rachel grinned, flopping onto the sand in between Finn's legs.

"Oh, you'll know it." Mercedes winked and gestured to Puck who started strumming his guitar.

"_Summer lovin', had me a blast…"_

**AN: So the ending was cheesy…**

**I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who has read and reviewed this story. It's actually the first multi-chapter fic that I've ever finished and it was down to your support that I did. So thanks… *awkwardly shuffles off***


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